The Egyptian Revolution

What is a social justice movement without passion? What is a social justice movement without perceived in justice? Nothing. In order for a civil rights movement or some other form of social justice movement to occur, two things need to happen. First, a perceived injustice needs to take place meaning people need a reason to fight for something. Are they fighting for gender equality? Free speech? Are they protesting minimum? The reason to fight can also be due to government control. Next, people need to be emotional engaged and invested in the fight. Content people do not start rallies. Content people do not start revolutions. They have no reason too. Social movements are very much emotionally driven like the 25 January Revolution. In today's modern society, social media has the power to play a vital role in rallies. On page 54 of the reading, the author discusses how one of the "most prominent initiatives was the network create around the Facebook group "we are Khaled Said". This Facebook group brought attention to police brutality (one of the many injustices the protesters in Egypt were fighting about) in Egypt. Khaled was beaten to death by police in June 2010 after he distributed a video exposing police corruption. The use of social media in this case united over thousands of Egyptians and foreigners from across the world to stand up for justice together. Although the history and inspiration to start a rally or protest comes from pre-social media days, the use of social media today not only helps brings attention to the situation, but they inspire others (as mentioned earlier) to be involved. Social media has become a platform for people to speak out. The following examples are just a few examples of how the presence of social media advanced these campaigns by bringing national attention to them. Even if the outcome at the end was not desirable, it still illustrates how power social networks can be to unite people and raise awareness in social justice movements/campaigns.