Digital Activism: For or Against Humanity?
[Non-Native Category’s First Prize-Winning Essay]
Generation Z, disillusioned by the established regimes worldwide, often participates in political actions. Their juvenile ardor, combined with technological prowess, can both inspire and terrify, given how fast and daring their responses are. Striving to change the world, Gen Z sees itself as the most progressive generation of all—the true harbingers of change. However, how weatherproof are their claims, really?
Digital activism often yields positive results as it can quickly reach a large number of people before authorities have a chance to meddle with the common narrative. In stark contrast to the nationwide response to the May 18 Democratization Movement, when the whole Jeolla province was cut off from the rest of the country and demonized as a communist-backed riot by the official media, last year’s unsuccessful self-coup attempt by then-President Yoon Seokyeol triggered an immediate resistance. Digital feeds on TikTok and Twitter were soon ablaze, with young people harshly criticizing the events, urging others to participate in the protests, and creating a variety of caricatures mocking the president and his office. Gen Z meme-culture is a particularly potent vector of digital activism. First popularized by millennials, the folk art of making funny pictures was turned into a powerful weapon in Zoomers’ hands, suitable for the challenges of the post-truth era. While official propaganda remains generally rigid and is late to respond to societal changes, memes reflect the zeitgeist, oscillating between humor and reality. People respond best to emotional triggers and are much more susceptible to irony and dark humor— common traits of Gen Z digital footprint—than any other objective.
On the other hand, digital activism can lead to dangerous consequences, as the rapid spread of information can significantly diminish its credibility. Gen Z is considered a passionate generation, acutely aware of social injustices and willing to act for the sake of humanity as a whole, being generally disconnected from any religious tradition and very loosely tied to any political ideology. In the absence of any generational role models, Zoomers first underwent a left-sympathizing progressive phase, particularly at the height of Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ movements, but soon fell into a rabbit hole of fascist sentiments in the face of right-wing success in Europe and the U.S.
Generation Z is quick to react to the information they encounter online at the expense of critical thinking. Complex issues like the Israel-Palestine conflict remain outside their semantic reach, more often than not transforming their Palestine sympathy into blatant antisemitism. Lacking intellectual refinement, Gen Z activism often turns, albeit unconsciously, to Nazi rhetoric when dealing with the Israel question. They occasionally base their assumptions on conspiracy theories without realizing how much they facilitate the order they strive to overthrow.
Moreover, Generation Z often remains within its informational bubble, limiting the impact of its earnest labor online. They repeatedly underestimate their opponents, mistaking strategy for backwardness. One prominent example is digital activism during the Russo-Ukrainian war. Many young people consider only official propagandist sources, fueled by the party line and detached from the problems of the general populace. Conversely, a more insidious type of imagery exists on the periphery of the state’s popular narrative. Russian activist Ekaterina Mizulina freely engages with younger generations, inviting them to discussions and covering their troubles, like the lack of central heating in schools, in her blog with sympathy and understanding. Although Generations Z and Alpha were initially skeptical of her progovernment position, she seems to have grown on them, gaining many fans among Russian teenagers.
Gen Z is a politically engaged generation. They promote humanist values centered on reason, empathy, and freedom, challenging the system and its figures of authority. One of the generation’s major accomplishments is its acerbic approach to digital activism, blending postmodern absurdity with modernist sensibility. They can quickly mobilize society, uniting it against the common enemy. However, the generation, devoid of ideological essence, cannot always determine who its true enemy is. They inadvertently recycle their adversaries’ agenda, underestimate their opponents, and fall victim to misinformation and haste. Nevertheless, digital activism, which gained its meaning under Generation Z’s patronage, remains a powerful tool of the future, one that can truly change the world, for better or worse.
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[First Prize Winner’s Remarks]
Generation Zeal
I am honored to have my essay chosen as the winner of this year’s English Essay Contest. It was a great opportunity to reflect on my generation’s political standing. As a member of Gen Z , I am not completely unbiased and have a soft spot for every positive development related to us. My optimism may not be shared by some readers, as young Koreans are considered generally apathetic to politics compared to previous generations. Though this is true to an extent, experience seems to prove that young people, regardless of where they are, have an innate impulse to disobey and rebel that has always pushed society to change.
Every young generation carries within itself an implicit conviction of its exceptionalism, and Gen Z is no exception. For a long time, however, many in Gen Z have felt being stiffed out of their promised greatness: with no major battles to fight, no continents to discover, and no history to be made anymore. While some grow restless, beating against the bars of their improvised prison, others, seemingly content with their accumulated excess, become almost anemic, having only mirrors to entertain them. Yet this kind of thinking is nothing but self-indulgence, for injustice and unfairness have never left, even for the briefest moment. The success of uprisings in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and many other countries, dubbed the “Gen Z protests,” shows that changes can and should be fought for. Furthermore, they demonstrate that certain questionable attributes of modernity—trends, social media, and hyperconnectivity—can be surprisingly beneficial to society.
The logic of the new era is undoubtedly digital, defined by algorithms and electronic footprints. Young people, often criticized for being obsessed with their phones, have a chance to prove that digital zeal may just be our rescue in this confusing, rapidly changing world.
By Kim Mariia, Freshman, Dept. of English Language and Literature