The Fusion Of Activism And Advocacy in the Digital Age — #SMWLagos2019 @segalink

Technology was cleverly defined as the state of human knowledge and we can see how it has evolved over centuries from the deployment of simple tools to the the complex construction of devices that took us to the moon.

Thus our world has become “Glocal” making the impact of simple thoughts, constructs, concepts, theories and ideas felt miles away from where we all call home, thus shrinking our world and making necessary connections possible.

In a country such as ours with a remarkable population that earned us the rank of the most populous democracy in the African/Black continent if not the world with a mind-blowing youth nation of over 70% of 200Million people falling within 18–35years of age, one can only imagine the global impact of the combination of such energies when threatened, with the potentiality of causing a socio-political seismic activity that will vibrate the sovereignty of other continents.

This is why it is imperative to study the impact of technology exchanges in the global ideation matchmaking (ideation being the creative process of generating, developing, and communicating new ideas, where an idea is understood as a basic element of thought that can be either visual, concrete, or abstract, comprising of all stages of a thought cycle, from innovation, to development, to actualization).

From America came twitter and with twitter in Nigeria, Activism was fused with Advocacy to amplify the voice of generations to perfect our democracy in an innovative way. Policy and legislative matters that often linger for over 50years are now confronted and resolved within a year as influenced by political will, galvanized through engagements and conversations via social media.

It even gets better.

We have since evolved from merely getting the word out, sharing ideas or giving information. We have learnt through the years how knowledge makes sages of ordinary people, and how understanding makes sages, ordinary people. We now understand unequivocally that awareness is not action.

We all know that Iraq is a country but that doesn’t make it a choice destination for majority of tourists. It is common knowledge that a huge percentage of locals in our major cities abuse artificial cannabinoids (black mambas, Omi gutters, street drugs ) but that doesn’t make them available on our online stores.

Awareness is thus important but insufficient, action comes from tension, desire and fear. Action being the hard part. A sage once told me that righteous calls don’t win battles but determination, blood and sacrifice. This is why the in-depth study of the product of the fusion of Activism and Advocacy as deployed in the #EndSARS #ReformPoliceNG campaign by our youth movement, must be made essential for our citadels of learning.