We Must Match Our Online Activism With Action, Says Farzana Rasool

The digital era is an activist's dream, but just reaching the audience isn't always enough, says Farzana Rasool's article, Chewing on cyber activism, published on ITWeb.

Farzana says:

You're hungry. You prepare a meal and take a large bite. You chew... and chew... and chew. You're still hungry. And that won't change until you start swallowing, right?

You can chew for hours and you'll be no closer to satisfying that hunger, unless you take that last step and swallow. This is the simple lesson that needs to be applied to digital activism.

We can do all the online screaming we want about abused children, sick Africans, war-torn Palestinians and hungry Somalis, but it won't make a difference until that final step is taken – until we swallow. Not even typing in caps will help us be heard in a way that matters.

We can sign e-petitions and join Facebook groups, but just clicking on a “join” button doesn't fill the belly of any child. These efforts must be taken forward to policymakers, world leaders and/or the press in order for signed names to make a difference. That's the swallow.

A very good kick in the butt for us to match our words with action, don't you think? I like it!

Read the full article.