Do you remember the first time you scrolled through social media and saw a wave of outrage flood your feed? Millions of posts, endless retweets, and hashtags everywhere. Hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, or #ClimateStrike weren’t just trending; they were echoing real pain, real stories, and real demands for change! 

What started as a symbol, a phrase preceded by a hashtag (#), quickly became more than just words on a screen. Through digital activism, these hashtags transformed into global movements. They sparked widespread protests, petitions, and people advocating. They encouraged emotional storytelling, personal experiences, and community discussions. They also fueled online calls for accountability, ultimately forcing institutions and organizations around the world to respond. 

A Hashtag that Shook the World: #BlackLivesMatter and 2020

A moment when a hashtag became a movement was back in 2020, when George Floyd was horrifically murdered. Social media was a tool that allowed the murder to be watched by millions across the world in real time. The platforms that circulated the footage most widely were X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, turning a single act of violence into a global flashpoint. According to public social media data, use of the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag alone surged past 1 million tweets in a single day in late May 2020 and continued generating millions of posts per day in the weeks that followed. On Instagram, the hashtag #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd appeared in over 1.1 million posts within a short time period. What began as digital outrage soon spilled into the streets, erupting into protests across cities nationwide and around the world.

Social media has proven to be one of the most powerful tools for mobilizing people in the modern age. Platforms like X, Instagram, and TikTok turn individual posts into collective calls for action within minutes. When hashtags such as #BlackLivesMatter or #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd began trending, they didn’t just spread awareness; they inspired people to leave their screens and take to the streets. Videos, livestreams, and shared personal stories created a sense of urgency and emotional connection that traditional news outlets couldn’t match. Individuals on social platforms coordinated protests, shared donation links, and circulated petitions, making activism more accessible to the general public. In this way, social media didn’t simply inform people — it mobilized them, transforming online outrage into organized, real-world movements that demanded justice and accountability. 

This is the power of digital activism: it doesn’t just stop at a scroll. Yes, Hashtags may live online, but their impact is truly measured by how they mobilize people online (Raising Awareness,  building communities, etc) , influencing policy change, and igniting movements that shift the culture. 

The Debate: Is it Online Activism or Slacktivism?

On the flip side, online activism becomes slacktivism when people stop at a repost and take no meaningful action beyond that. Slacktivism is what we call those feel-good online actions that take little to no effort, like reposting an ad or story on Instagram. It can be helpful for spreading awareness, but not when it comes to actual impact. 

For example, when a high-profile figure like Taylor Swift reposts an ad about signing a petition, her platform can amplify the cause to hundreds of thousands of people almost instantly. An article reports that after Taylor Swift posted about voter registration with a vote.org link, the site saw a huge surge in activity, 65,000 new registrants in 24 hours and 250,000 in 72 hours, showing a measurable impact on registrations from a celebrity post. This kind of reach shows the incredible potential of social media to raise awareness and mobilize supporters, turning a single post into a real-world impact. While some might dismiss online actions as small, leveraging influential voices demonstrates how digital platforms can help causes gain momentum and inspire meaningful engagement.

  Slacktivism is, by definition, not effective. It gives people the feeling of participation without requiring any actual sacrifice or change in behavior. Reposting a flyer or hashtag doesn’t pressure lawmakers, doesn’t fund resources, and doesn’t dismantle systems. Remember, awareness without action dies online as quickly as it trends. 

Conclusion: Beyond the Hashtag

Social media is not the movement; it is only the microphone! Real change doesn’t happen in a comment section; it happens when people leave the screen and take action offline. Movements like #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo only became powerful once people marched, organized, donated, voted, filed lawsuits, disrupted silence, and demanded accountability.

A hashtag alone changes nothing. Action is what transforms a trend into a movement.

Don’t just post… do!

Show up in real time. Fund the work. Call your council members. Organize meetings. Disrupt comfort. Apply pressure. Protect your people. Push until change exists in the real world, not just on your feed.

If you care about Black Lives Matter, don’t stop at sharing a hashtag. Consider:

If you care about #MeToo, don’t just repost survivor stories. You can:

  • Volunteer at a crisis hotline
  • Advocate for stronger campus reporting systems
  • Support legal aid for survivors
  • Help push for policy change

If you care about the Climate, liking and sharing infographics isn’t enough. Try:

  • Attending a climate strike
  • Pressuring your school to divest from fossil fuels
  • Write to your legislators to support the Climate Superfund Act
  • Joining a local climate coalition

About the Author: Di’Andre Davenport, MBA, is a PR intern at the Lesniak Institute for American Leadership. He is an aspiring media creator and communicator with a passion for storytelling, digital culture, and contemporary issues. His work aims to connect ideas, spark dialogue, and explore the evolving landscape of digital and traditional media.