Many people refer to Occupy Wall Street as America's first internet-era movement. The protest showcased the economic inequality, corruption, and the influence corporate entities had in the government and began in September 2011. It was through the fueling by the vital media that it became such a success. That is because many media stations shared viral videos of protestors being arrested by the police. Through these protests, people showed their dissatisfaction with the political and economic state in the US. This protest showed the hardships most Americans who had accrued student debts and had their homes about to be foreclosed faced. The protestors wanted to show the societal problems that proved there was inequality in America and wanted the people in power to act.
The Occupy Wall Street movement occurred on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, thus attract lots of crowds on the internet. The social movements aired the grievances faced, which is why Occupy Wall Street was such a popular movement on the internet. The movement became bigger when the hashtag; #occupywallstreet , on twitter, went viral. That was the best way to pass information (Suh, Vasi, & Chang, 2017). The primary motivation for the protest was the 2008 financial crisis that left many in debt, and the situation was not improving. The use of social media platforms influenced people to fight for their rights. Facebook was used to bring people together and offer feedback hence building the solidarity needed to fight for their rights (Kavada, 2015).
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It is through these social media platforms that many people were allowed to participate. The age bracket did not matter, and as long as one was on those social media platforms, they could participate in the movement. It was not about showcasing a political stand but having a discussion on how to work together and make life sustainable for all. The social media platforms brought togetherness and changed how people shared their disappointments. Through this movement, it shows that social media helps people to have a collective voice. Such platforms engaged protests without necessarily forcing people to protest in the streets but using their voices online. People worked through an organized form of communication, which pushed the government to act. The likes and comments are the right methods for people to show their solidarity. It demonstrates how powerful social media is and how it calls people to act as a group to help them when fighting for similar interests (Kavada, 2015).
Based on how the protests were organized, it proved that twitter, YouTube, and Facebook are used to create teamwork. According to Suh, Vasi, & Chang (2017), these platforms provided people with a distinctive platform that called for action to talk about the economic and political instability in the country. The movement became diverse and moved from New York and spread to the rest of the cities around the globe, including Europe and Africa. That proved that digital media could call for change and mobilize people to been part of that. All these platforms proved that no matter the physical distance, it is possible to unite people and fight for the same course. This protest showed how the rich and the poor were treated by corporations and pushed for change. However, the whole reason the movement became that successful was because of the internet era.
References
Kavada, A. (2015). Creating the collective: Social media, the Occupy movement and its constitution as a collective actor. Information, Communication & Society , 18 (8), 872-886. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118x.2015.1043318
Suh, C. S., Vasi, I. B., & Chang, P. Y. (2017). How social media matter: Repression and the diffusion of the occupy Wall Street movement. Social Science Research , 65 , 282-293. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2017.01.004
