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The absurdity of social media
It's October 25th, 2023, and on my way to the gym this morning I was stopped in my tracks by the most peculiar sight. The windows of my local Starbucks - that new one at Bathurst and College - had giant bright green graffiti on the windows. The graffiti said: Boycott Starbucks. Free Palestine. Save Gaza.
Considering the climate in which we're living, graffiti like this doesn't actually surprise me. What surprised me was that last week, there was an announcement that the Starbucks union was in support of the Palestinian struggle. In fact, last week the Orthodox Union threatened to boycott Starbucks for this very reason, claiming that Starbucks had “Jewish blood in its coffee” (metaphorically, of course). And just yesterday, I saw people on social media posting that we all should boycott Starbucks because of their anti-Israel stance. I actually saw people on social media saying that if you don't want to boycott Starbucks, you should at least go inside and when the barista asks for your name, tell them that your name is “Am Yisrael Chai,” so that they have to shout that when your drink is ready. Just yesterday, Starbucks was considered evil because they supported Palestine. And today, Starbucks is considered evil because they don't. My guess is that the graffiti was in reaction to the Starbucks corporation coming out and denouncing the statements made by their union, and so it appears as though Starbucks has “switched sides.”
It was at this moment that I finally realized how dangerous and absurd social media has become. Now don't get me wrong - I haven't been naive to the pitfalls of social media and the dangers therein. I've been aware of the virtue signaling, of the spreading of misinformation, of the hate, the lies, and the vile things people say when they're hiding behind a keyboard. None of this is new to me, but the sheer absurdity of it all came crashing down on me today.
Not joining in
In recent weeks I have been quite silent on social media. This is not because I don't have opinions, fears, worries, and thoughts that I would like to express, but because I know that there is nothing that I could say that wouldn’t garner an argument from someone. There is no position that I could take that wouldn't set somebody else off. I have been accused of horrible things online in the past; I've been called a Kapo. I've been told that I am a self-hating Jew… and worse. None of these things really bother me because I know that people are reacting and not thinking. They are responding from their guts and not their heads. I know that I am none of those things, but when I say something that is even remotely critical of the Israeli government, that is the reaction people have. I understand it. It's not OK, but it is how it is.
The situation that we are all living through is a painful one. People are dying, people are missing, and whole communities are living in fear. I know that many of us feel helpless. We want to do something; we want to act – but the only thing that most of us have right now are our words. I understand that posting on social media is a way to express our anxieties and seek emotional support. I realize that in a world where everything feels so divided, finding like-minded people online can be a comfort. It’s important to share resources and find community wherever we can. I also recognize that there is no real truth online. Even the best articles, the best “hot takes” are flawed, and by nature of the medium, they lack the nuance and depth that this situation requires. If one day we hate Starbucks for supporting Palestine and the next we hate Starbucks for not supporting Palestine, it’s clear that there is a lot of information missing. It’s too easy to get caught up in other people's fervour, too easy to grab onto the declarations, the one-liners, and the memes that end up dehumanising the “other.”
Let’s be very clear – what you post on social media will have about as much impact on the outcome of this war as where you buy your coffee. None of it will change the hearts and minds of those who hold the power. There are days when I wish it could, and days when I’m glad it can’t. We must remember that arguing online, or even in person, won’t resolve this conflict. We cannot fall into the pitfalls of dehumanisation. The images of the lion and the serpent dehumanise Israelis and Palestinians. The rhetoric of “justified violence” dehumanises. The language of “choosing sides” dehumanises. Punishing baristas who are just there to make your coffee so that you can make a statement dehumanises. We cannot forget the human beings in all of this. We cannot forget the human suffering. We cannot forget the humanity of the people with whom we are arguing. We are all worried, we are all afraid, and we are all doing the best we can with the information we have. There is so much to take in, so much to learn, and the best we can do right now is hear each other, have compassion for each other, and open our hearts to each other.
Our Congregation Shir Libeynu community is here for you. Whether you’re angry, afraid, or feeling overwhelmed or numb, we’re here for you. If you need to cry, if you need to scream, if you need to sing, if you need to sit in silent contemplation, we’re here for you. Please continue to reach out to each other, and if you need some support, please let me know. Our hearts are all broken, perhaps for different reasons, but for the same reasons all at the same time. We can be heartbroken together, and together we can pray for peace.
If you need to talk, please contact me at cantorwunch@gmail.com, or make an appointment at https://calendly.com/cantorwunch
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