From social media to social impact | Amonge Sinxoto | TEDxLytteltonWomen

Summary

In this insightful TEDx talk, Amonge Sinxoto shares her journey of transforming social media into a tool for impactful social change. By recounting personal and peer experiences with racial and cultural biases, she highlights the importance of standing up for causes close to one's heart. Amonge elaborates on four key landmarks in her mission: investing in a cause, finding a like-minded community, developing solutions, and maintaining consistency in efforts. Through social media platforms, she has driven significant youth initiatives and gained global recognition, proving the powerful role of social media in creating social impact.

Highlights

• Amonge shares personal experiences of racial bias in her school. 😡
• She emphasizes the role of social media in spreading awareness. 🌐
• Four essential landmarks include investing in a cause and finding allies. 🤝
• Her initiative gained global recognition, including an invite from Michelle Obama. 🌟
• The importance of consistency in social activism is highlighted. 🕰️

Key Takeaways

• Social media can be a powerful tool for positive change. 💪
• Investing in a cause is essential for creating impact. 📈
• Building a supportive community amplifies your efforts. 👥
• Consistency is key to maintaining momentum in social activism. 🔄
• Personal stories can drive meaningful social movements. 🗣️

Overview

Amonge Sinxoto, a 17-year-old from Johannesburg, uses her personal experiences of cultural biases to advocate for social change through social media. She passionately discusses how young individuals can harness online platforms to challenge societal issues and promote positive values. Her candid recount of personal stories deeply connects with the audience, making a compelling case for her cause.

Throughout her talk, Amonge introduces four pivotal steps that shaped her journey in transforming social media into social impact. Starting with investing in a cause and finding a dedicated team, she explains how social media allows for broad engagement and active participation. She highlights the significance of developing and promoting solutions, encouraging the audience to act without the fear of imperfection.

Amonge's inspiring story of meeting influential figures like Michelle Obama demonstrates the far-reaching impact of digital activism. Her call for consistency not only bolsters her message but serves as a vital lesson for aspiring social activists. With humor and charm, she effectively communicates the critical link between personal narratives and global movements, urging young people to believe in their power to instigate change.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 02:00: Introduction and Personal Experiences The chapter discusses personal experiences related to the use of languages in school settings. The narrator recalls their old school where speaking an African language was prohibited, under the pretense that it would make others uncomfortable, while other languages faced no such restrictions. The chapter highlights instances of cultural bias and an experience of an Indian student questioned by a teacher about his personal life, illustrating preferential treatment and underlying prejudices in educational environments.
• 02:00 - 03:30: Social Media and Social Impact The chapter titled 'Social Media and Social Impact' discusses various issues of race and identity, as portrayed through personal anecdotes. A speaker reflects on the impact of apartheid, sarcastically illustrating the mixed messages of 'gratitude' for a problematic historical era that was supposed to bring 'civilization'. The narrative continues with an account of school experiences, where the speaker faced subtle racial and cultural biases. They recount how being the only girl with curly hair in class led to teachers making disparaging remarks, highlighting issues of racial insensitivity and identity struggles. The anecdote about the teacher's suggestion for hair relaxer underscores societal pressures to conform to certain beauty standards, which reflects larger themes of racial discrimination and cultural assimilation.
• 03:30 - 04:30: Investing in a Cause The chapter discusses the emotional impact of racial stereotypes and the struggle to maintain identity amidst prejudice. A particular incident highlights a dorm mate's insensitive comment about black women, leading to a reflection on racial dynamics and personal identity. The chapter underscores the influence of societal perceptions on self-image, as evidenced by the narrator's mention of straightening her hair regularly. The narrative provides a personal insight into the challenges faced by individuals dealing with casual racism and the complexities of navigating personal and cultural identity within a diverse social setting.
• 04:30 - 08:30: Finding Support and Making Others Care The chapter titled "Finding Support and Making Others Care" explores the personal and collective experiences of a 17-year-old Xhosa girl from Johannesburg, South Africa, and her peers. It highlights the emotional struggles and real-life challenges faced by the youth, emphasizing the non-fictional nature of these stories. The narrative draws attention to the ongoing and historical traumas experienced by South African youth, contrasting current experiences with the more violent past. The chapter underscores the gap in effective ways to address and heal from these traumas, pointing to a need for better support systems and awareness to help young people cope with their experiences.
• 08:30 - 10:00: Preparing and Populating a Remedy The chapter discusses the generational divide in perceptions of social media, highlighting how older generations, unacquainted with the internet, can struggle to understand its prevalence in modern life. It touches on the breeding ground for resentment and ignorance that can arise from this divide, as well as the ubiquitous presence of social media in everyday life for younger generations.
• 10:00 - 13:00: Consistency and Conclusion In this chapter, the focus is on the role of social media in modern information dissemination. Platforms like Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram are highlighted as primary sources for retaining information across various domains—from news and entertainment to local events and social gatherings. The chapter emphasizes how social media has enhanced accessibility to information, making it easier to stay informed about diverse topics.

From social media to social impact | Amonge Sinxoto | TEDxLytteltonWomen Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 Transcriber: Ibrahim Fayyad Reviewer: Rhonda Jacobs At my old school, we weren't allowed to speak an African language. Teachers even gave us detention if we did. They said it would make people who didn't understand feel uncomfortable. Yet other languages were spoken, and there was never any consequences. 'I'm an Indian boy, and my Life Orientation teacher asked me if I knew when I was getting my GTI,
• 00:30 - 01:00 and if I had decided on what colour I wanted.' 'You should be grateful for Apartheid, it brought civilization to this country.' 'I was the only girl in my class with curly hair. Teachers would always jokingly ask if I had combed my hair that day, and even said it looked dirty. One teacher said that she had a friend who got relaxer, and now her hair doesn't look so rough.
• 01:00 - 01:30 That day made me really sad, and now I straighten my hair three times a week.' 'I'm a black boy and another guy in my dorm said: "Geez, black chics stink!" Then he tried to salvage the situation by saying: "Don't worry, you're still my bro. Black guys are just different to black girls."' My name is Amonge Elito Sinxoto.
• 01:30 - 02:00 I'm a 17-year-old Xhosa girl from Johannesburg, South Africa. I'm quite sad to say that these aren't fictional stories. They're actual experiences of my own and my peers' youth. I think we all remember that there was a time when stories of youth in South Africa were much gorier. The problem then lies with the shortcomings in terms of dealing with that trauma
• 02:00 - 02:30 that's now left a breeding ground for the kind of resentment and ignorance that I face in my world. Another quite distinct characteristic of the world I live in is the unavoidable presence of social media. It's not quite a phenomenon to me and my peers, but to those of you who lived in a time without television, never mind the internet, I think it's quite imperative that I explain to you the life that we as a generation lead.
• 02:30 - 03:00 Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram. I mean, this is how we retain information about anything and everything. From breaking news to celebrity gossip, the latest blockbusters, and where the party's at that weekend. Uh, did I say party? I meant study group. Anyways, the point that I'm trying to get across is that social media has made everything just that much more accessible.
• 03:00 - 03:30 On that note, my point of conversation today is social media, and transforming that into social impact. Social impact can be defined in many different ways. But I think these latter few generations have started to look at it as having your voice heard, and having that voice being significantly acknowledged. I myself have noted four distinct landmarks than have been essential
• 03:30 - 04:00 in my journey of transforming social media to social impact. Do you want to hear them? (Laughs) Okay. So the first one for me was investing in a cause. Now, investing in this context can be quite broad because it can mean starting your own initiative, supporting someone else's initiative, or even just doing the research. You know, gathering the facts, the information that makes the presence of this issue indisputable.
• 04:00 - 04:30 It's undeniable that our world has never been so environmentally damaged, socially complex, or culturally challenging So it's imperative that each individual has their own cause that they stand for in whatever capacity that they wish to do so. At my old school we had this thing called 'anti-litter Friday'. Every grade would have 10 minutes
• 04:30 - 05:00 to run around the school and gather as much litter as we could find. The world right now kind of reminds me of that time. Only now we're just standing around with our arms crossed, tweeting things like 'Guys, please pick up that fragile masculinity,' and 'Please don't just leave your problematic opinions lying around,' instead of everyone just picking up a load. So I mentioned earlier, and I thought about the experiences of my peers and I,
• 05:00 - 05:30 the complexities of growing up in a disillusioned rainbow nation, and I say that this is unacceptable, that this is not only a constant but also a universal experience, that Africans across the country and across the globe face on a daily basis, in a number of different environments. For me, I first encountered it in school, but others encountered it in university, the work space, corporate environments,
• 05:30 - 06:00 any time that we are forced to leave an essential part of who we are at the door in order to be considered tolerable. So I had found my cause, and it was giving a voice for the African youth to acknowledge their frustrations in a non-judgmental environment. This issue is and was one that is extremely close to my heart.
• 06:00 - 06:30 Firstly, because it's my own lived experience. But secondly, because I decided it was time to stop waiting for someone else to do something about it. The next landmark is 'Find them'. So there's actually two parts to this one because there's Landmark 2, Subsection A, that pertains to your team, your intimate squad, your posse, if you will. People who are as passionate about this issue as I was.
• 06:30 - 07:00 I had to find them. If we consider a person like Steve Jobs, an incredible mind, no doubt about it, but all that was achieved in his lifespan in terms of transforming the scope of technology is ode yes to his brilliant mind. But more so to his grand team that did the actual work to make the products available.
• 07:00 - 07:30 Nothing, and I mean nothing moves without the collective mind. So this notion that there is this 'one' that's going to single-handedly disrupt generational waves is incredibly false. Then, there's Subsection B, which pertains to the rest of the world. I needed to find a way to make the rest of the world care. If you think about it, in a span of 45 years,
• 07:30 - 08:00 handheld mobile phones have gone from non-existent to an essential in most parts of the world. All because a group of somebodies found a way to make it a necessity to modern-day existence. But first, they had to find a way to make people care about the issue, which is this is where social media has been my greatest ally. The initiative that I started to combat the cause that I was supporting
• 08:00 - 08:30 was started on Instagram, where we shared stories of African youth, and then it culminated into a website, that then expanded to videographic and photographic content and campaigns, promotions of seminars, programmes, and workshops, but it all started on my phone. Since then I've been invited to speak at Google and Facebook in Dublin, Ireland.
• 08:30 - 09:00 I've been invited to the prestigious Howard University, in Washington, DC. Because of the something that started on my phone. And even most recently, invited to an intimate round-table discussion with former first lady Michelle Obama, all because of something that started on my phone. Social media allows for a vast global connectivity. And then there's landmark number three,
• 09:00 - 09:30 which is 'Preparing and populating a remedy'. So it's all good and well to have a cause and having people who care, but if I wasn't actively seeking out a solution or promoting the implementation of the solution, then it was all kind of meaningless. It was important that I didn't feel pressured to have some perfect solution before I started implementing, because probably I wouldn't have started,
• 09:30 - 10:00 and secondly, there was so much that I learnt along the way that I could have never anticipated in the deliberation room. Finding a remedy was a developmental process for me. So I mentioned earlier that my cause was giving voice to the African youth, and I thought the best way to do this was to equip ourselves for the future. And what would that mean? Well, my answer was 'leadership'. So that's what we did - gave voice to the African youth
• 10:00 - 10:30 and developed them through leadership training and mentorship. I'm talking seriously investing in developing young Africans as leaders that were going to navigate developments of the future. Social media in terms of populating the remedy has been extremely instrumental in that regard. But don't get me wrong, not everything has been quite as photo-shoot fresh
• 10:30 - 11:00 as it would seem. And the last but certainly not the least is to be consistent. Now, this is probably one of the most challenging ones because it never essentially ends. But it's quite important because in this ever-changing and oh-so-fickle way of the world today, people have come more and more to appreciate consistency.
• 11:00 - 11:30 In Michelle Obama's new memoir entitled 'Becoming', she explains an instance that quite clearly highlighted this last point that I want to leave with you. Her husband, Mr. Barack Obama, had just stepped more intensely into political light. The family planned a trip to Hawaii, and they finally made it after much delay to those few days of family fun and much needed rest. Right in the middle of the trip, Mr. Obama gets an urgent summon to report for a vote
• 11:30 - 12:00 and their trip is cut short. Their daughter Malia gets terribly ill, and they decide there and then that she's unfit to fly. They both stay while she's recovering, and it results in Mr. Obama missing the vote. Now, any reasonable person can recognize that these are strenuous circumstances and respect his decision to stay. But the media frenzy that followed this perceived the former president
• 12:00 - 12:30 as self-indulgent and not having the best interests of the country at heart. This was quite an eye-opener for me because they failed to see the alignment of his actions and his agenda, which highlighted that I not only needed to be consistent in my work, but I needed to be consistent in my singular public image because it always needed to correspond with the cause. So that's it, that's me, that's all I've got from you.
• 12:30 - 13:00 These four key landmarks that were essential in my journey to solidify the relationship between social media and social impact. Thank you. (Applause) (Cheers)