{"id":321244,"date":"2024-06-05T09:19:44","date_gmt":"2024-06-05T13:19:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lgcassociates.com\/?p=321244"},"modified":"2024-06-05T09:19:44","modified_gmt":"2024-06-05T13:19:44","slug":"how-to-avoid-performative-activism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lgcassociates.com\/es\/how-to-avoid-performative-activism\/","title":{"rendered":"Don’t Fake it This PRIDE: How to Avoid Performative Activism"},"content":{"rendered":"

Back in 2020, we saw a surge in businesses prioritizing social justice in their social media campaigns. Unfortunately, not all campaigns are <\/span>good <\/span><\/i>campaigns. Some do more harm than good. In any advocacy work, it\u2019s important to be genuine, listen more than you speak, and stick to your message.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Businesses that launch efforts for advocacy but have no action behind their words are often called \u201cperformative.\u201d This is a dangerous umbrella to find yourself under as it can drop your credibility significantly. So, how do you avoid performative activism? What does it look like and how can you do it correctly?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As June is PRIDE month, there are good and bad ways to support the LGBTQIA+ community. Let\u2019s dive into what performative activism is, how your business can avoid it, and some examples of PRIDE campaigns done well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What is \u201cPerformative Activism?\u201d<\/b><\/h3>\n

The term can be defined as \u201ca form of activism used to increase one\u2019s social capital or personal gain rather than genuine support towards a movement, issues, or cause.\u201d This definition, written by Petiri Ira<\/a>, a writer for <\/span>The Medium<\/span><\/a>, centers around the surge of performative support by social media users back in 2020 at the height of the Black Lives Matter<\/a> movement.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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If you were on Instagram in 2020, you probably remember an oversaturation of black squares populating your timeline (over 28 million<\/a> to be exact). While this campaign started with good intentions, it quickly took a turn for the worse. Trends have immense social power, and that\u2019s what the black square was. It showed that you or your business was an \u201cally\u201d without having to do any of the actual work to earn the title. This is the central issue with performative allyship campaigns.<\/p>\n

Allyship is instrumental in enacting real change, but in order to provide value to a movement it must be beneficial. The key issue with the Instagram blackout was that it pushed all the content that advocated for real action out of people\u2019s feeds. Instead of lifting up the voices that were being silenced, it spoke over them. If your allyship does not center around the people you are advocating for, you are likely going to do more harm than good.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So how can you make sure you stay on the positive side of change?<\/span><\/p>\n

How to Avoid Performative Activism<\/b><\/h3>\n

\u201cActions speak louder than words\u201d is the most effective motto to keep in mind when you are planning a campaign for PRIDE month or any other social justice movement. In other words, if you are putting something into the world so people will believe you are for the movement, but you still have policies in place that are against those people, your actions do not match your words.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are a few ways you can make sure you\u2019re being a part of the solution and not the problem:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n