The world, as most people know, has taken a turn for the worse. Whether it’s the suspicious amount of redacted files being released to the public, or a possibility of World War III, it’s agreeable to say that America has a problem (along with the many other countries in this world). With all this, there’s only so many issues an individual can care about. In fact, researcher and social psychologist Roy Baumeister says that humans are physically incapable of caring for every situation that strikes concern. Social media influencers as well as commenters, feel the need to make their compassion regarding world issues and political opinions well known. For example, people during the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020 often portrayed themselves as an “ally”, and if one didn’t support this movement or make it known they supported (via Instagram post or bio), then this creator would then be labeled as a racist, then get “cancelled” on various platforms. Unfortunately, due to today’s culture, less people are being authentic in their actions and opinions because they are too fixated on how they appear, rather than how they can change.  For example, commenters feel the need for bigger influencers to speak up about the tensions in Palestine, even though the commenters have just as much free will and voice. It’s understandable to want more coverage and asking others for help, but in other ways, this logic can be hypocritical when it comes to a point of slander and condemnation towards other creators for not doing the very thing they aren’t doing as well. It actually takes more effort for someone on social media to scroll through TikTok or Instagram, find a big creator, comment on their video about spreading awareness, and then continuing to scroll on TikTok. If people were really compassionate about the issue, they should start with themselves, and see what they can do about the situation. The world has become chaotic, there’s events happening every day, some changeable, some not. It’s impossible for every person to care about every new issue. It is much easier for someone to get online, say they care about an issue, slander others for it, then continue living their life with no further actions. Putting an emoji or hashtag under a video is not equivalent to doing something about the problems. And while it’s okay to do that, bringing other people down and judging their character is not good and far more harmful than helpful. People recently are too focused on what others are doing about a situation that it leads people astray from the very issue they want people to talk about.

Be the Change You Want to See

Empathy and compassion are two great qualities that will change the world in a positive way, but it’s so important to recognize the dangers of prioritizing complaints over pro-activism. People overtime become desensitized to evil; think about how much more they will be if all that’s ever talked about online is the fact that nobody is doing anything about it. Some things like wars and government issues are things that we as a people cannot change, so reflect and think about things in your own community. Think about things happening in your city. Don’t lose your mind over things you can’t control and don’t judge anyone else for it either, but instead, be proactive and find ways to involve yourself so that the world will change little by little.