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On October 31t 2019, the well-known actress and environmentalist Pamela Anderson revealed her Halloween costume on Twitter. The photo contained Anderson wearing a feathered warbonnet normally worn by leaders of Indigenous tribes of the plains region and earned for brave deeds. Many Indigenous people responded in disgust, feeling that a symbolic item from their culture was desecrated. Furthermore, users found the sexualized pose in the photo distasteful in light of the hundreds of cases of missing and murdered indigenous women and the sexual abuse they face. Being an animal rights activist, Anderson also condemned the Indigenous seal hunt practice by calling it “barbaric”, not realizing that it is essential for the survival of many Inuit communities. An optimist would marvel at how no one is immune to criticism on the internet, not even the most rich and influential, as evidenced by the backlash against Anderson. It is always somewhat amazing to see a famous or powerful figure being held accountable for a wrongdoing, as this has become so rare in our society. On social media, justice is in the hands of the people. It would not be an exaggeration to say that on some level, social media has been incredibly helpful in the fight for equality. Language, the primary mode of human communication, is rapidly evolving as marginalized communities use their own slang on the internet. Acronyms, textspeak and emojis are used so frequently that what one would consider a “proper” knowledge of English grammar need not be necessary for self-expression. This is extremely liberating for those who grew up in poverty and did not enjoy the same standard of education as the elite, or for those who suffer from a disability that may prevent them from meeting the rigid standards of linguistic prescriptivists. Social media helps people whose voices have historically been silenced. Any concerns that millennials and their rampant social media usage is somehow undermining the integrity of the English language and hindering communication ignores the ever-changing nature of language. Believing that social media is detrimental to communication also maintains, in some aspects, that freedom of expression should only be enjoyed by a few.
Critics of social media often suggest that there is a correlation between how much time one spends scrolling through Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and their risk of developing depression or anxiety. This is often seen as an explanation for the mental health epidemic in our society today. The theory maintains that by following famous people, millennials are always comparing their lives to celebrities instead of being grateful for what they already have, which causes them to feel sad. This ignores the actual social media usage patterns of millenials. Most of their time on social media is spent sharing “internet memes”, which are humorous pictures or that are rapidly spread throughout the internet. Memes are often used as coping mechanisms for mental illness. The most popular memes are the ones that the largest amount of people can relate with. Social media helps remind depressed individuals that they are not alone. People are more unhappy today than previous generations, not because of comparing themselves to others on social media but because of issues like climate change, hateful politicians, and a lack of affordable housing. Social media helps them be more aware of these problems. It facilitates communication by giving depressed people a platform to vent on even if they have no one to talk about their mental health with in real life. It is also clear that depression is more common in members of marginalized groups as society has often aimed to destroy their cultures or identities. If used right, social media can help people cope with depression as it uplifts oppressed voices to fight against ableism, sexism, racism and homophobia.
Historically, language was a tool of the oppressor. The Norman influence on early English exemplifies this. After the battle of 1066 AD, when the French-speaking Normans conquered England, French became the language of the ruling class. Words of French origin were and still are considered superior to the original Anglo-Saxon English words, even if they are synonyms. For example, the French word “intelligent” is considered a better way of saying the Anglo-Saxon word “smart”, “royal” is better than “kingly”, “purchase” sounds more sophisticated than “buy” and “sanguinary” is more eloquent than “bloodthirsty”. Old English died, and Middle English was born. English writers still managed to leave their mark in literature with works such as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. About two hundred years later, English was forced on colonized people all over the world, who then developed their own dialects and variations of standard English. These dialects have been silenced, barred from usage in academic settings, and deemed improper by the elite. But that never stopped them. An example is African American Vernacular English (AAVE), also known as ebonics. AAVE speakers are often dismissed as uneducated, but on the internet there is no question that their culture flourishes. Words like “bae”, “woke”, and “lit” all have their origins in AAVE and are commonly used in memes.
Communication on social media is often more concise than real world human interaction, but this only represents a new stage in the evolution of the English language. Any language which is still alive, meaning that it still has native speakers around, will go through change. People should come to terms with the fact that the English language will change, just as society must not fear change if it brings justice to oppressed people. One must remember that social media is helping to restore the right to freedom of speech, which has been denied to so many in the past, and that there is no point to maintaining a standard of language and communication which does not serve the needs of all members of society.
On October 31t 2019, the well-known actress and environmentalist Pamela Anderson revealed her Halloween costume on Twitter. The photo contained Anderson wearing a feathered warbonnet normally worn by leaders of Indigenous tribes of the plains region and earned for brave deeds. Many Indigenous people responded in disgust, feeling that a symbolic item from their culture was desecrated. Furthermore, users found the sexualized pose in the photo distasteful in light of the hundreds of cases of missing and murdered indigenous women and the sexual abuse they face. Being an animal rights activist, Anderson also condemned the Indigenous seal hunt practice by calling it “barbaric”, not realizing that it is essential for the survival of many Inuit communities. An optimist would marvel at how no one is immune to criticism on the internet, not even the most rich and influential, as evidenced by the backlash against Anderson. It is always somewhat amazing to see a famous or powerful figure being held accountable for a wrongdoing, as this has become so rare in our society. On social media, justice is in the hands of the people. It would not be an exaggeration to say that on some level, social media has been incredibly helpful in the fight for equality. Language, the primary mode of human communication, is rapidly evolving as marginalized communities use their own slang on the internet. Acronyms, textspeak and emojis are used so frequently that what one would consider a “proper” knowledge of English grammar need not be necessary for self-expression. This is extremely liberating for those who grew up in poverty and did not enjoy the same standard of education as the elite, or for those who suffer from a disability that may prevent them from meeting the rigid standards of linguistic prescriptivists. Social media helps people whose voices have historically been silenced. Any concerns that millennials and their rampant social media usage is somehow undermining the integrity of the English language and hindering communication ignores the ever-changing nature of language. Believing that social media is detrimental to communication also maintains, in some aspects, that freedom of expression should only be enjoyed by a few.
Critics of social media often suggest that there is a correlation between how much time one spends scrolling through Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and their risk of developing depression or anxiety. This is often seen as an explanation for the mental health epidemic in our society today. The theory maintains that by following famous people, millennials are always comparing their lives to celebrities instead of being grateful for what they already have, which causes them to feel sad. This ignores the actual social media usage patterns of millenials. Most of their time on social media is spent sharing “internet memes”, which are humorous pictures or that are rapidly spread throughout the internet. Memes are often used as coping mechanisms for mental illness. The most popular memes are the ones that the largest amount of people can relate with. Social media helps remind depressed individuals that they are not alone. People are more unhappy today than previous generations, not because of comparing themselves to others on social media but because of issues like climate change, hateful politicians, and a lack of affordable housing. Social media helps them be more aware of these problems. It facilitates communication by giving depressed people a platform to vent on even if they have no one to talk about their mental health with in real life. It is also clear that depression is more common in members of marginalized groups as society has often aimed to destroy their cultures or identities. If used right, social media can help people cope with depression as it uplifts oppressed voices to fight against ableism, sexism, racism and homophobia.
Historically, language was a tool of the oppressor. The Norman influence on early English exemplifies this. After the battle of 1066 AD, when the French-speaking Normans conquered England, French became the language of the ruling class. Words of French origin were and still are considered superior to the original Anglo-Saxon English words, even if they are synonyms. For example, the French word “intelligent” is considered a better way of saying the Anglo-Saxon word “smart”, “royal” is better than “kingly”, “purchase” sounds more sophisticated than “buy” and “sanguinary” is more eloquent than “bloodthirsty”. Old English died, and Middle English was born. English writers still managed to leave their mark in literature with works such as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. About two hundred years later, English was forced on colonized people all over the world, who then developed their own dialects and variations of standard English. These dialects have been silenced, barred from usage in academic settings, and deemed improper by the elite. But that never stopped them. An example is African American Vernacular English (AAVE), also known as ebonics. AAVE speakers are often dismissed as uneducated, but on the internet there is no question that their culture flourishes. Words like “bae”, “woke”, and “lit” all have their origins in AAVE and are commonly used in memes.
Communication on social media is often more concise than real world human interaction, but this only represents a new stage in the evolution of the English language. Any language which is still alive, meaning that it still has native speakers around, will go through change. People should come to terms with the fact that the English language will change, just as society must not fear change if it brings justice to oppressed people. One must remember that social media is helping to restore the right to freedom of speech, which has been denied to so many in the past, and that there is no point to maintaining a standard of language and communication which does not serve the needs of all members of society.