Lady Gaga's Activism

by Emily Kafoury
05/12/15

Throughout history and leading up to today, many celebrities have been involved in a wide range of charities in order to improve the well being of different people around the world. In my opinion, one of the most influential celebrities in the 21st century would be Lady Gaga; and here’s why. Perhaps most notably, Lady Gaga has received media coverage for being heavily involved in several well-publicized activist campaigns for Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender and Queer rights, anti-bullying action, and youth empowerment initiatives (“Gay Advocates Hail Lady Gaga’s Activism, VMA Drag Act”, Vaiani 2011). Gaga unlike any other artist, has also mobilized her activist tendencies in her musical output and artistic
He believes that social media cannot simply fix a problem and that trying to fix a problem through social media is a passive reproach. Gladwell has two main arguments: one of them being that the Internet and its social constructs are adjoined by “weak ties” between individuals, in comparison to activism built on “ strong ties”. His second argument is that these social networks are a hierarchy, and that this hierarchy makes or breaks a civic movement. Malcolm Gladwell states in his article that: “The world, we are told, is in the midst of a revolution. The new tools of social media have reinvented social activism. With Facebook and Twitter and the like, the traditional relationship between political authority and popular will has been upended, making it easier for the powerless to collaborate, coördinate, and give voice to their concerns.” To me this is completely true, however Gladwell is completely against saying that social media has an impact on activism. He would probably speak about Gaga’s actions as ‘slacktivism’ and here’s why I don't agree. In 2010, Gaga brought to social media the issue of America’s policy “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ which applied to all military to keep quiet if they were gay or if they knew that someone was gay. Avidly, she took the issue to Twitter where many people stood by her side in support trending the subject world wide and bringing attention to the American Government. Without hesitation the 24 year old popstar at the time stood in-front of a crowd of hundreds and fought for what she thought was the right thing to do. In her speech she says: "If you are not honorable enough to fight without prejudice, go home,”(“Lady Gaga’s ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Speech: The Full Transcript’”). Gaga’s pivotal role in advocating for the repeal of American military ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policies served as an