The Status Of Apathy
A few months ago people on Facebook launched a ‘campaign’ to end child abuse.
This ‘campaign’ basically entailed everyone copy and pasting a generic explanatory status into their feed and replacing their profile picture with a cartoon character from their childhood.
Despite popular belief, this ‘movement’ had nothing to do with the charity Prevent Child Abuse America, nor was it condoned by the NSPCC.
In fact, as the days drew on, the message became so distorted that any reference to charity or fundraising (if there was any in the first place) was lost, only to be replaced with people commenting on their profile pictures and using the status as an excuse for nostalgia.
At first this was amusing as people trawled through their feeds reminiscing about Hey Arnold, Rugrats and Disney films, but then malicious rumours began to spread concerning adults using their new ‘childlike’ profiles to engage with vulnerable children through Facebook.
Whoever had begun this viral campaign, though with the best intent, had lost the initial effect they had been aiming for.
The same general theme has begun to surface now with the popularity of ‘twibbons’. This paints your profile picture on either Facebook or Twitter with a logo or emblem of the charity of your choice. Although this raises great exposure for that charity, it does not give anything in return.
Charities have become a new way of showing off or gaining moral status among your friends. We all know the feeling of giving money to a street fundraiser and getting a ‘prize’ in return: a poppy; a daffodil; a flag; a sticker. Twibbons and Facebook profile pictures and statuses have become marks of charity and giving, yet without the actual process of giving.
These ‘prizes’, these online ‘stickers’ of giving, are empty and hollow. You do not drop a pound into a collection box to earn one nor do you donate via PayPal to deserve the right to don one on your page. Charity has become an act of status. We are happy to sit at home and champion a cause by changing our profile picture or typing in a message of support, yet there is so much more we could be doing.
With the recent disaster in Japan, many people have sent their messages of support and hope via social media. Yet how many of them have actually given to a charity like The Red Cross or any other tsunami felief fund?
Of course, many people like children and students do not have money to spend when it comes to charity and this is understandable. But how about their schools or institutions they are part of like football teams, youth clubs, amateur dramatic societies or dance schools?
Despite the prevalence of charity and giving in social media, we have become apathetic towards people’s problems. It will soon be Comic Relief and how many people will be sat at home enjoying the entertainment and never picking up the phone. They will hear as the running total of funds increases and children in Africa thank them, yet they will be doing nothing.
This article is to urge you to stop the status of apathy and do something. If you are touched by the events in Japan then don’t just change your status and get a twibbon, or if you do, then do something to earn it. Here are a few ideas for you to combat apathy. Because it is not good enough to just talk about a problem:
- Draw a picture or make a piece of craft and sell it on eBay (did you know you have the option of sending all the proceeds to a charity of your choice?)
- Urge your school / team / club to hold a fund-raising night such as a cabaret evening or raffle, bingo or a quiz. Perhaps your local pub could be convinced to hold a quiz night where the proceeds get donated to the charity of your choice
- Clean out your wardrobe of clothes and shoes that don’t fit you anymore and take them to your local charity shop / Salvation Army drop box. Same goes for old books / toys / CDs /DVDs. Alternatively, hold your own garage sale or car boot sale and send the donations to charity yourself
- Take part in a Race For Life or similar charity fun run / walk. There are so many going on all the time and there are even more exciting opportunities like mountain climbing / foreign excursions / parachuting and bungee jumping that you could do instead
- Support a local Red Nose Day Fundraiser (like The Big Red Hootenanny! in Cardiff)
- Have a car wash (when it’s warmer of course), bake sale, craft sale. Anything that gets you doing something is not only productive but it can be great fun. Why not choose your favourite hobby and find a way to raise money with it? Anything is possible
- The more direct approach. There are so many websites out there now for every charity you could possibly think of and it is ever easier for you to donate to them, so why not? A small amount can go a long way and even if it is only a couple of pence it is appreciated by so many people. It is always better than nothing
Whatever you choose to do or how you choose to give and to whom, you have done something wonderful. It may be a wonderful feeling to feel like you have raised awareness for a cause, whether that is through Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, DeviantArt or Tumblr, but nothing can compare to the feeling of actually doing something.
This is my way of spreading awareness of apathy. It is a horrible social disease that needs to be eradicated, and the only cure is you.
