Earlier this month, a campaign on TikTok known as Blockout 2024 was launched as a response to tone-deaf social media posts from celebrities and online influencers about the over-the-top fashion choices from the Met Gala. The movement encourages people to “block all the celebrities, influencers and wealthy socialites who are not using their resources to help those in dire need” and has been described as a “digital guillotine.”
When one online influencer tried to explain her silence by saying she doesn’t speak on Gaza because she is “not informed enough to talk about it in a meaningful and educational way,” she was attacked even more harshly. The belief of the movement seems to be that anyone who has a significant platform has an obligation to speak up.
Deciding what should matter for someone else is always a losing effort. Should celebrities be compelled to speak up about causes that they know little about simply because they are important in the world? Should all of us do the same?
