The Evolution of Twitter
I remember my early days on Twitter, and by early, I mean 2010, the fall semester of my sophomore year of college (four years following the creation of the site). One of my close friends who already had an account suggested to other friends and me to get an account. The idea at the time seemed foreign, I thought to myself, why in the world would anyone want to see an entire day of multiple statuses of my random thoughts? I felt I had nothing to say that would entertain anyone, plus at the time I believed Facebook was just superior to Twitter. Twitter just felt too personal. You are allowed to be a freer version of yourself on Twitter more so than I believe than users on Facebook. I reluctantly made an account and six years later Twitter has become the go-to place to find out to information about what goes on nationwide and internationally, Facebook did once serve that role, but now Facebook seems to be at least a few hours and sometimes days behind topics that are discussed on Twitter.
I love that when there is a major news topic or hashtag, social media users from all walks of life and from all over the globe can share their perspectives. What makes social media unique is that we are able to come together and listen to one another; that in and of itself is beautiful. But there is something else magical about Twitter, something that cannot be emulated -- that is Black Twitter.
Black Twitter is space reminiscent to me of being a little girl and sitting in a salon on Saturday mornings waiting to get my hair done, or during family barbeques and gatherings when the adults gathered in the living room to have “grown folks talk.” Black Twitter is a community, we laugh, we discuss, we learn, and each day we are having sometimes challenging conversations about the things that may plague our country, our families, our communities or the beliefs that are important to us.
When Mike Brown was killed in August 2014, there were so many differing accounts of the incident that it was hard to recognize what was true and what was false from mainstream news organizations. Twitter was where I could seek out those answers and learned the truth. There were men and women of all different backgrounds, journalists, and citizens of Ferguson and the surrounding areas that were on the ground for days tweeting their experiences. It is because of their narratives that I was able to make sense of the death of Mike Brown. I felt pain, anger and sadness as I read through the accounts of those on the ground protesting in Ferguson. I was able to commiserate with other users who felt the same as I did. I owe it to Twitter that I was able to find a space to express truly what I felt as Mike Brown lay on the street for hours before his body was taken away.
It is because of those would be activists in Ferguson that change has come, people are proclaiming that Black Lives Matter and pressure is being put on officials in leadership to hear the cries from people of color.
It has been beautiful to see activism evolve from Twitter and then translate into tangible change for our country. One other thing that I love about Twitter is that there is a group for everyone to belong. As I follow writers and journalists of color, I am discovering the work of intellectual and talented people while being encouraged to become a stronger writer. I see via Twitter positive affirmations and representations of myself that I have longed for but found missing from mainstream media. Black Twitter has made evolution possible for me.
Tonia Hill is managing editor for BOLD the magazine. You can follow her on Twitter @_ToniaHill
Tonia Hill