Gladwell and Stone on Activism

     The discussion in class between the views of Gladwell and Stone have been on my mind and there have been many situations that have come up causing me to think more deeply into the topic of activism. I like to think of myself as a caring individual who will go out of my way to protect someone/something or fight for something I believe in, so since our in class discussion I have been analyzing my habits surrounding the topic of activism.

     The definition of activism is: The policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change. By this definition I would consider myself an activist; I donate money here and there for causes when I can afford to, I occasionally retweet tweets when they mention campaigns for non-profits, I try and shop on days when companies donate a portion of their profits to charities and so on. So, in this sense, according to this definition, I would consider myself an activist. However, after reading Gladwell’s article I feel like calling myself an activist is somewhat insulting to other individuals that have done much more and that have put much more on the line for causes they believe in.

     After reading both Gladwell and Stones articles, discussing the articles in class, reviewing my habits and researching the topic a little more I cannot say I choose one author over the other as correct but I will state that I agree more with Gladwell than I do Stone. I agree with Stone in the fact that little things people do can make a great impact and that doing something little, such as spreading the word on Twitter, is better than doing nothing at all. I don’t agree with Gladwell’s statement that you’re body must be put in physical harm to be considered an activist but I do believe that if you are going to call yourself an activist of something you have to do more then retweet or share something via the internet while your sitting in the comfort of your home; to be considered an activist you must do everything in your power to better that situation you are supporting. If you are not doing everything possible to support your cause you are not an activist, you’re just a person who did a good deed.