Social Awareness Vs. Performance

We are living in the most socially aware era in history. On social media, we see people openly discussing topics like mental health, normalizing pronouns, and sharing posts on social justice cases. On the surface, this visibility is a huge step forward: movements gain traction faster, marginalized voices reach broader audiences, and conversations about inequality are more mainstream than ever. But there’s a growing tension between genuine awareness and the pressure to perform it online.

Algorithm boost posts that show any signs of morality and trend-based solidarity. The results in a culture that believes reposting a cause feels safer than having the difficult offline conversations. In this environment, the line between authentic awareness and performance blurs. People may appear socially concise online, but most of the time don’t understand the meaning behind their actions.

This has a lot to do with cancel culture; people are more afraid of not posting something because it might get them canceled than of posting their fundamental ideas and intentions. But I’ve noticed that eventually everyone’s true intentions and ideals show.