Do You Have To Post On Social Media?

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While I agree that silence is compliance, I don’t think that silence on social media is compliance. I don’t think those two things equate. And I don’t like that many people equate them.

You don’t have to post on social media to care about something. In fact, in many cases, posting on social media makes us feel like we’ve done something real, and may prevent us from donating, protesting, writing to politicians, because we feel like we’ve done our part.

For example, I donate to causes helping Gaza as much as I can afford to. I’ve written to politicians, signed artist petitions, talked in person to people about it, gone to protests. I’ve done all of these things, but I don’t pot about it on social media, and I don’t like feeling pressured to do so.

Moral policing around issues has become rampant since 2019. Shame is being used as a potent weapon. Telling people they are on the wrong side of history, are compliant, actively participating in killing people etc. for not doing the same things you are doing, is coercion. Ile you may feel compelled to behave a certain way, it doesn’t mean other people are wrong or immoral for not behaving in the same way. It’s wrong to imply they are. I think this is an uncomfortable thing that’s happening, which we don’t eally know how to talk about.

All of this is of course contextualised by my opening remark, if you are doing nothing AND you’re not posting on social media, then I agree that your silence is compliance. However, if you aren’t posting on social media but you are having conversations, supporting charities that help make real change, and doing what you can in the real world to get your country on the right side of this issue, I don’t feel the need to shame you for not posting stuff on your social media channels.

Absolutely drive it on if you want to post it. But we need to stop shaming people for not doing so. We’re meant to be kind. That was the whole shtick with the left. But I’m seeing a lot of venom, a lot of moral policing, and it doesn’t feel very kind.

Free Palestine.