Luke Thompson
SOC 202
Bono, leader of the Irish rock band U2, believes technology can solve many of Africa's governmental and human rights issues. As a long-time activist supporting HIV awareness and treatment in Africa, Bono is now turning his attention to what he feels is another viable issue affecting the continent.
Government corruption has long been the norm for many developing African nations. In the past, these officials have taken advantage of the people's inability to react with significant resistance due to a suppression of personal freedoms. But Bono says that times are changing. "It's hard to be a totalitarian regime when people know so much. It's also hard to be a corrupt police officer when people can text and tweet about it."
He believes that social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook along with the general accessibility of information can empower those who are being suppressed and give them the tools to be educated about their circumstances and also fight back.
Bono used the recent protests that lead to the resignation of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt. He noted that because of social networking sites, activists were able to organize rallies and band together to achieve their shared goal of reform.
People who once felt stuck in their circumstances within a corrupt regime now have hope for change through the use of technology. As the internet gains accessibility, its liberating powers are also made available to those who, in generations past, would have no hope for escape. This could also lead to the prevention of outside nations feeling pressured to start liberation wars with corrupt leaders, avoiding the complexities of outside long-term reorganization.
1 comment:
While protest movements around the world are being very innovative when it comes to using communication and information technology to organize and resist, it should also be noted that governments have used it as a tool of repression. Cell phones can be used to listen in on people and track their movements and police agencies have used social networking sites to gather intelligence on activists and people associated with them. Certainly, IT is a useful tool for spreading censored information and for organization but it needs to be kept in mind that without the proper operational security it is a sword that can cut in the other direction too.
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