Nikki Lynette is over is the “hashtag” movement
Everyone by now is familar with Twitter and the wonderful magic that is a trending topic and the power that it posesses. The “hashtag” movement began in 2012 when Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by George Zimmerman in what I would call the most publisized alleged murder of the century. Social media came together in full force making #TravonMartin and #GeorgeZimmerman names no one over the age of 15 at the time will ever forget.
Since then we have seen a pleather of hashtag movements, none of which have seemed to measure up to the impact Trayon Martin’s death had on social media, That hasn’t stopped people however from creating new hashtags for every african american death since Trayvon’s alleged murder, including a #BlackLivesMatter and then the inevitable #AllLivesMatter and the most recent movement that seemed to stir this nation to a boiling point #SandraBland.
Nikki Lynette has been outwardly and unapologetic on her feelings for the said movements as well as frustration for not seeing what I would call solution. When I caught up with her so I could get a deeper understanding of her concerns Lynette was very open and had this to say,
You are very open about your stance on the media covering african americans being killed by white law enforcement, can you tell Hype a bit more?
I’ve been socially aware long before it recently became a popular thing to talk about. And it’s not because I’m deep, it’s because growing up I saw some unjust things happen to my dad at the hands of the police, and I experienced racism myself as a kid. I started reading black history books when I became a teenager. It was just always important to me to be able to understand the bigger picture of what’s going on with my people, the stuff that was done to us and the stuff we do to ourselves.
Social media is the new 8pm news update with some social media sites even blocking movement hashtags. How do you think social media affects the movement for racial awareness?
On one hand I think that social media has been extremely useful in making it ok to talk about black issues and injustices in general, it makes social justice struggles visible and commands attention and dialogue. On the other hand, I feel like it’s leaving room for a lot of hashtag activism, which is a fad. And fads go away. Meaning, I’m worried that after a while it will no longer be trendy to discuss social injustices, so a lot of people are gonna stop.
It’s nice to finally see a public figure not just hashtag #BlackLivesMatter but to also put knowledge behind the status updates. What do you want people to understand about the hashtag movement?
Well Black Lives Matters is a grassroots organization in itself, people learned about it because of the hashtag but they actually are more than that. I’m not affiliated with them at all but I respect what they do, and what Millenial Activists United does. I guess I want people to remember that there is more to the movement than just hashtagging. Only days ago I saw Joe Bart trending after he was killed by cops. It was gone in a day. Before that Christian Taylor trended for a couple days and disappeared, and by then barely anyone was discussing Sandra Bland anymore. People’s names keep getting turned to hashtags when they are killed by cops, but what is it accomplishing? The online activism part is super important but it would be dope if people considered other ways to make a difference, too.
What do you think the media is missing most ?
The media rewrites the narrative of situations for the sake of catchy headlines and creating drama. Don’t even get me started.
Do you think things are getting better or do you think the hashtag movement is just a phase?
I think that there are gonna be people who are in it for the long term and people who are in it because it is a popular thing to do right now. So ultimately I’ll say it is getting better, just because new people are stepping up and speaking out against things that they see as unfair. We don’t need the people who are only in it as a fad. They were never really part of the solution anyway.
If you could choose a hashtag for todays racial tension what would it be and why?
#DealWithIt Because so many people of different races would rather not discuss the things that make us all different, the struggles we face because of those differences, or what we can do to fix it. And that’s because it’s not a very polite, easy conversation to have. But it needs to be had. People need to suck it up and deal with it. For real.
What does Nikki Lynette have up next for the world as far as music projects and collaborations?
I’m working on an album called Respect My Disrespect with my co-producer Matt Hennessy. It features tracks from Da Internz and Oh Hush! but most of the project was produced by me and Matt. I don’t have a release date set for it yet. I don’t rush my magic ever!
Where can people keep up with your happenings and tweets?
On my Nikki Lynette Facebook page and my Twitter/Instagram, @nikkilynette. And I should warn everyone, I am not politically correct. I speak my mind online and in real life and it runs some folks the wrong way. But that’s cool. It’s not my job to rub anybody the right way, is it?
To answer her question, No. Keep being you that’s what makes you Bad A$$.
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About the Author
Jameelah "Just Jay" Wilkerson Publisher and CEO of The Hype Magazine. Follow me on Twitter @HypeJustJay
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