I can't speak for everyone, but most of us, at some point in this digital age, have run into the phenomena known as the meme. This is particularly true if you have an account with Facebook and Instagram, but memes are present all over the internet -- even in news articles and comment threads on forums. It's a pretty common occurrence for friends to text each other memes back and forth. I know -- I do it all the time, mainly for laughs.
But it's this humorous nature of memes that can blind us to what's actually going on with the images we share and post all over the internet, and the potential damage they can do to those portrayed in the adapted images. In her article "Why are memes of black people reacting so popular online?" Ellen E. Jones comments on this and explores the underlying racism that often goes unnoticed and is ignored in our meme culture that also, in turn, ridicules so-called "politically correct social justice warriors" and those who would speak out against these images and content. Shafiqah Hudson, in an interview with Jones, observes that a huge problem with memes and social media at large is the increasing number of users pretending to be black and projecting images of black culture through their distorted lens -- digital blackface, in other words. "It's superfun to 'play black' when you know you can instantly step back into being non-black, avoiding the stigma, danger and burdens of reduced social capital that real black people often endure [...] so while it may not be the stated intention of the folks who participate in digital blackface, it is anti-black racism that makes it possible for them."
Whether we or our students are creating or sharing memes, memes can "perpetuate colorblind ideology by simultaneously mocking people of color and denying structural racism." As educators, we need to be aware of the images that are filtering through the every day of our students' lives -- even those we would typically regard as "harmless." And we need to work together with our students to break down the racially charged messages hidden in memes, talk about what it means, and what we can do to spark change.
A way to do this might turn into a classroom activity like this:
- Ask students to gather into groups of 3-4. Create a class-wide Google document, and give students five minutes to search "that's racist," "black lives matter," or another key term related to race (like a topic you're discussing in class that's related) on Meme Center. (If you don't want them on this site due to potential issues with the images and language, consider printing out a meme for each group to discuss instead, and alter the discussion that way).
* - Have the groups discuss the following: Why is this meme "funny" or why would others think it's funny? What is it telling us about the person (or people) involved? What are some potential problems you see with this meme? Do you think it's funny? Why or why not? If somebody sent you this meme, how would you react?
- When students find a meme, have them post it in the Google Doc. Project the Google Doc at the front of the classroom.
- As a class, discuss first what each group came up with regarding their meme. Then, together, create a list of ways to counteract the messages in the meme -- both obvious and hidden. Reflect on how this might look outside of the classroom and on their social media accounts, their texts, et cetera.
- Exit ticket opportunity: Have students connect their initial reactions (amused, angered, uncertain) to the memes to how they might react now after talking together.
If you do have them search Meme Center, be aware that many of the memes have strong language that may hurt your students or make them uncomfortable, so modifying this activity may be necessary (I might actually recommend that you do, out of respect and care).
*Example image found on Meme Center, search "that's racist."
**Another interesting source: an article from the NY Post about a student who turned an image of a classmate during a skit into a racist meme.
This is a really great idea. When thinking about technology memes didn't even occur to me but they're perfectly bite-sized packages of information that are a readily available resource and students all understand how they work. Using your example above, what in most circumstances makes this meme funny is that whatever the shooter is labeled as is incredulous when it is clearly their fault, but in this case the meme undermines the systematic violence that police officers display toward black people. This is a classic argument because many people say that black on black violence is the real problem and deflects the serious issues in the US justice system. It's just spun in a novel way so that whoever created this meme can walk away from their statement without impunity coming from others who know that thought process is racist.
ReplyDeleteLike Katie, I hadn't even thought of the power of memes. They just always seemed like something that was just there for comedic purposes, something that I also tend to send a lot of through my group chats. I love the lesson that you've come up with, its awesome to analyze their use especially in this day and age where memes are everywhere from Facebook to clogging up our photo albums. This is really awesome Jess and something that would be cool to think about in our lessons if we get the chance!
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