Genres of Activism

This week, we read a lot about the different genres of activism and how they are all interconnected. One of the main points of the "Genres and How Writers and Readers Depend on Them" is that genres are flexible maps that can be adjusted over time in order to change the overall message or to connect with other genres. There are no clear guidelines for what a certain genre is, and it is helpful to remember that they can change. Miller et al. focused on the multidisciplinary and multidimensional nature of genres in order to discuss their place in the current online activism climate. Both readings together describe why genres are important and how they can be used to categorize actions.

In my movement this week, a lot of the discussion focused around the US Midterm Election. Activists used a variety of genres to encourage people to vote for government officials that fight for climate and sustainability-related legislation. Some made signs outside of polling places, some posted on twitter, some made Instagram slideshows, among many other forms of communication. While they were all structured differently, they all had the same message... GO VOTE! This idea gets at one important point brought up in the Miller article- "Although replication of genres may encourage conformity and inhibit innovation, critical genre theory and pedagogies counter such tendencies by recognizing the inescapability of genres in all symbolic action." Many criticisms of online activism suggest that everyone conforms to similar online genres because it is easy. In reality, it is inescapable that many similar genres will be used to enact social change because they increase visibility and conversion.