gladwell-small-change

The Greensboro Sit-Ins (1960)

• Date: February 1, 1960.

• Location: Woolworth's lunch counter, Greensboro, North Carolina.

• Participants: Four college freshmen from North Carolina A. & T.: Ezell Blair, Franklin McCain, David Richmond, and Joseph McNeil.

• Initial Encounter:

  • Blair orders coffee; waitress refuses service due to race.

  • A black female employee encourages them to leave, but they remain seated.

• Escalation of Protest:

  • The sit-in grows from 4 to 600 participants in the ensuing days, spreading to other cities in the South.

  • Protests spark violence from white counter-protesters and local authorities.

• Outcome:

  • Large-scale involvement across multiple southern states and engagement of approximately seventy thousand students; several thousand arrested.

Social Media's Role in Activism

• Myth of Social Media Revolutions:

  • Events like the Moldova protests and the Tehran demonstrations are cited as social media-led movements but criticized for claims about their reliance on Twitter and Facebook.

• Criticism of Digital Activism:

  • Evgeny Morozov critiques the Twitter Revolution narrative as exaggerated; protests often orchestrated by other means.

  • Western journalists failed to accurately represent the internal dynamics of protests.

The Nature of Effective Activism

• Historical Context:

  • Racial insubordination in Greensboro met with violence; early protesters faced serious dangers.

• Freedom Summer (1964):

  • Volunteers engaged in high-risk activism faced violence and intimidation, underscoring that activism entails significant personal risk.

• Key to Successful Activism:

  • Doug McAdam's study on participants reveals that personal connections (strong ties) significantly increase participation in high-risk activism.

• Characteristics of Successful Activism:

  • High-risk activism often involves individuals with pre-existing strong ties and personal connections to causes or movements.

Weak Ties vs. Strong Ties

• Social Media Dynamics:

  • Social media networks are built on weak ties, prioritizing broad connections over deep, committed relationships.

• Strength of Weak Ties:

  • Weak ties facilitate new ideas and information exchange but minimize the likelihood of high-risk activism.

• Example - Help Sameer Campaign:

  • Bhatia’s bone-marrow donor campaign proves successful due to ease of participation but lacks high-stakes engagement.

Difference Between Activism Forms

• Nature of Social Network Activism:

  • Easier participation may lead to diminished impact; individuals participate without real commitment.

• Historical Activism:

  • Movements like the civil rights sit-ins were organized, strategic, and had formal structures through organizations like the NAACP.

• Networks vs. Hierarchies:

  • Traditional activist movements were hierarchical and structured with clear leadership.

  • Online movements operate as decentralized networks that struggle with strategic goal setting and unified action.

Conclusion

• Critical Reflection:

  • The social media era generates quick mobilization but lacks the robust organizational structure needed for impactful, strategic activism.

  • Future activism may benefit from understanding the limits of social media while recognizing the historical significance of well-coordinated, high-risk efforts.