There are many ways to support today’s movements especially through the social media platforms that are available to our generation. Money can be easily donated and messages can be quickly sent. TikTok has created a platform in which people can link petitions and share important information to millions of people. Users like Aviva, Taylor Cassidy, The Real Kamryne and more! Many have been able to educate thousands all over the world about Black history through short clips. Our generation does have a short attention span, so the quick videos make the history lessons memorable and fun.
Aviva is a Tik Tok user that has been an advocate for change in the Black Lives Matter movement. She has 271.4K followers and through her videos, she has brought awareness to some of the Black history that is not taught through school systems. One of her videos addresses Claudette Colvin. In the video, she explains that in most school systems, students are only taught about Rosa Parks. Claudette Colvin was the first Black woman to refuse to give her seat up for a white person. Aviva explains in her video that the reason Claudette is unheard of is because she was a pregnant 15-year-old and dark-skinned, whereas Rosa Parks is lighter-skinned and her story is the one that we are taught in school.
Taylor Cassidy is another user that has reached millions with her “Fast Black History” series. Taylor has 2.1M followers. Utilizing TikTok’s video editing, Taylor creates quick yet very informative clips. In her videos, she introduces her followers to many great and influential Black men and women that have made history. Cicely Tyson is one of the women that she introduces. Tyson was a model and actress in Hollywood. The longer she was in the world of Hollywood, the more she noticed the discrimination of Black women in acting. Mostly seen given roles in films as servants, maids, etc. Tyson vowed to only play roles that “portrayed black women in a positive light.” This was transformational for Black women in Hollywood. TikTok also allows for donations from user’s pages. Tiltify is a fundraising platform, and through this Taylor has raised $10.57k for Black Girls Code.
Kamryne is a Tik Tok user that has been educating her followers on Black history that wasn’t taught in schools. Therealkamryne has 51.2K followers on Tik Tok. In her videos, she mentions pioneers, such as James E. West and Lewis Latimer. Kamryne’s page has immaculate vibes and is educating thousands on some of the inventors and influential Black men and women in American history.
There are some negative things that come from today’s technology, but we can also find many positives too. The ability for gen-Z to create so much positive change through technology is exciting and in the future, hopefully tech will allow for even more to be done. As well as for even more movements like Black Lives Matter to get funding and support. Snapchat and Instagram have also played a big part in these important movements.