Throughout history and leading up to modern times, activism has been a source of unity among citizens of society that come from various different backgrounds. Activism is the policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change. Not only does it create a sense of togetherness, activism also helps humans move forward as a whole. However, some see activism as a form of extremism and they, therefore, oppose some or all forms of it. This opinion is overall misguided and erroneous. Thus, activism is vital to human society to move forward and to ensure a brighter future for generations to come. One of the main components of activism is human and civil rights movements. There is a myriad of movements and revolutions
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However, with such methods comes conflict and opposition. One controversial method of protest is “hacktivism”, a combination of the words “hacking” and “activism”. This term refers to the act of hacking or breaking into a computer system for a politically or socially motivated purpose. Many times, it is difficult for activists in small numbers to make a large impact or any impact at all, so some take to hacking in order to further their agenda and bring awareness to their cause. This includes taking down and blocking websites, or document dropping, which refers to releasing personal information of a target, usually business executives or political leaders. The opposing peoples of hacktivism state that it is an unethical and hypocritical form of protest, as it is promoting censorship. In the article, “Hacktivism Is an Effective and Ethical Means of Social Protest”, Armstrong states that “censorship is a very strong term describing the suppression of ideas; this sort of website blocking is more comparable to graffiti than book burning” (1-3). Another form of controversial activism is judicial activism. Overall, judicial activism has an extremely negative reputation. This is because many feel that the Supreme Court should make decisions based on law and act as a neutral umpire, rather than relying on personal feelings acting as an activist (Long 1-2). The Green Movement in Iran is another example of the people taking charge and creating a better habitat in general. The citizens of Iran are taking to the streets of Tehran (the capital of Iran) and creating a revolution to overthrow a corrupt and repressive government. The power of activism is evident in this situation; hundreds of people were tortured, arrested, and sentenced to prison, and yet the revolution lives on (Fakhravar 1-2). In addition, labor unions everywhere stand up to their unfair employers and take strike on the streets of cities.
However, with such methods comes conflict and opposition. One controversial method of protest is “hacktivism”, a combination of the words “hacking” and “activism”. This term refers to the act of hacking or breaking into a computer system for a politically or socially motivated purpose. Many times, it is difficult for activists in small numbers to make a large impact or any impact at all, so some take to hacking in order to further their agenda and bring awareness to their cause. This includes taking down and blocking websites, or document dropping, which refers to releasing personal information of a target, usually business executives or political leaders. The opposing peoples of hacktivism state that it is an unethical and hypocritical form of protest, as it is promoting censorship. In the article, “Hacktivism Is an Effective and Ethical Means of Social Protest”, Armstrong states that “censorship is a very strong term describing the suppression of ideas; this sort of website blocking is more comparable to graffiti than book burning” (1-3). Another form of controversial activism is judicial activism. Overall, judicial activism has an extremely negative reputation. This is because many feel that the Supreme Court should make decisions based on law and act as a neutral umpire, rather than relying on personal feelings acting as an activist (Long 1-2). The Green Movement in Iran is another example of the people taking charge and creating a better habitat in general. The citizens of Iran are taking to the streets of Tehran (the capital of Iran) and creating a revolution to overthrow a corrupt and repressive government. The power of activism is evident in this situation; hundreds of people were tortured, arrested, and sentenced to prison, and yet the revolution lives on (Fakhravar 1-2). In addition, labor unions everywhere stand up to their unfair employers and take strike on the streets of cities.