Examples Of Spontaneous Memorialization

The greatest fear of humans is chaos — when unexpected events disrupt our meticulously planned daily activities. In these instances we act in a way to gain control and understanding; one way of doing this is through spontaneous memorialization. In his article, Allen Haney defines spontaneous memorialization as, “a public response to the unanticipated, violent deaths of people who do not fit into categories of those we expect to die” (Haney 343). Examples of traditional spontaneous memorials include collections of mementos at the sight of a tragedy, and candlelight vigils. These do not replace traditional mourning rituals, but act as an immediate, urgent response as an adjunct mourning ritual. Spontaneous memorialization has evolved to an
These videos become activist media, bridging the time between tragedy and an official recognition or peaceful end of an event, as a way for the individuals to create meaning and express loss. In the wake of the death of a celebrity, websites like YouTube become flooded with user-made tribute videos—reflections and compilations of favorite clips of their work to honor their lives and contributions. In a similar fashion, there are a multitude of memorials for tragic events such as the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which have pictures, news clips, and music that identifies with the video’s creator, as a way to memorialize loss as well as to help them and others cope. Even on a more personal level, individuals make slideshows of favorite photos and music to be played at funeral home visitations and memorial services to help remember a loved one. The time that an individual spends thinking of and creating these videos is time spent grieving, through a creative outlet that allows them to be connected with strangers who share similar feelings of shock and
Hashtags are words or unspotted phrases that take advantage of the # symbol, as a way to mark keywords or topics in a social media post, as a way to categorize them. In a society where social media has such an integrated role in everyday life, it is no surprise that the death of pop stars, like Michael Jackson, brings the internet to a screeching halt to mourn their loss. The hashtags #MJWeAreOne and #RIPMJ were used not only in the immediate days following his death in June 2009, but continue to reappear on the anniversaries (Lossing). The 9/11 Attacks on Terror are followed by a similar hash tagging phenomena on its anniversary. On the 11th anniversary of the attacks, the New York City Police Department memorialized fallen officers through a Twitter campaign using the hashtag #neverforget. Instantaneously this hashtag became a top-trender on Twitter, as well as other social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, where people memorialized loved ones and payed remembrance to the innocent lives lost on that day (Basu). This means of expression serves to unite people who are mourning or in shock, providing them with a sense of