“LIKES” don’t save lives, according to UNICEF Sweden. (http://www.cbc.ca/news/yourcommunity/2013/05/unicef-strikes-back-against-slacktivism-likes-dont-save-lives.html)
I beg to differ. “LIKE” campaigns do make a difference. “LIKE” campaigns on Facebook and other social media sites create awareness of social issues and of crises that people around the world are facing. Sometimes it translates into real dollars, sometimes it doesn’t.
Sometimes it is a corporation that says “LIKE” this, and we will give $1 to “insert name of cause”. Well great, I support the cause. I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to donate $ to the cause, so I will “LIKE” this and the cause will still get $. Win-win.
Sometimes it is just an individual asking for “LIKES” to show support for their own individual goals, such as quitting smoking. These kind of “LIKE” campaigns don’t do much, because as much as it is great to see that hundreds of thousands support this person’s efforts to be healthy, it really is up to the person’s willpower to make that change in his or her life.
While I do agree that the simple act of “LIKE”-ing something doesn’t mean that a life is instantly transformed, there is still power behind these campaigns. There is a portion of the population what would never actively donate anything, to any cause. A “LIKE” campaign actually gets these people to do something, even if it is just to click a button and help promote the campaign, and that is who these “LIKE” campaigns usually target, because ACTtivists are already involved in their causes and do more than just “LIKE” something.
Anyway, those are just some thought that I wanted to “Share”. 🙂
fracturedfiction 