‘Look, I’m so secular!’ The rise of virtue signallers on social media
July 23, 2017, 12:05 AM IST
Chetan Bhagat in
The Underage Optimist |
India | TOI
The rise of social media in the past few years has meant that a lot of public opinion is debated, discussed and shaped on forums like Twitter and Facebook, and even thousands of local WhatsApp groups. One would imagine these powerful tools that connect millions can enable us to distill the best opinions on an issue, which can then shape our response to them.
However, there is a huge problem. These discussion forums are public. And in public, a lot of people are fake. They want to be seen as good, proper, balanced, modern and progressive. Most of all, they want to be seen as virtuous. If I can come across as a person who has these wonderful qualities to my 200-odd Facebook, Twitter or WhatsApp friends, it is more valuable than actually saying what I feel on the issue.
In this context, a term called ‘virtue signalling’ has become popular on the internet recently, although it was used in a few articles several years ago. But it is only now that you see virtue signalling on full display.
Try this. Mention that “I don’t feel safe sending my parents on Amarnath Yatra after Muslim terrorists killed Hindu pilgrims.” Chances are several people out there will scream ‘communal! communal!’ to your statement before you even understand what on earth happened.
You see, these people have to show that they are so virtuous, so noble, and so good that they sense something is communal even when others don’t. Of course, there is nothing wrong in your original statement, as you are stating a fear based on an incident that has occurred.
However, the virtuous lot on the internet will demand that a) you don’t mention any religion at all ever, b) as Hindus are in majority, we must never raise an issue that affects Hindus because that makes us majoritarians and c) a truly virtuous person will not see this as an act against Hindus, but merely some bad people trying to hurt some good people and that is all that needs to be mentioned.
Of course, that is not how the human mind works or thinks. The fact remains that many Hindus will now think twice about sending their elderly parents to pilgrimage sites, particularly in Kashmir. However unsavoury, this needs to be discussed. How can we have a country where the majority of people feel unsafe about going to their places of worship? Is it communal to discuss this issue and come up with solutions?
According to the virtue signallers, it is. Your mentioning the word Hindu, let alone an issue that affects only Hindus, will brand you as communal. This is because by doing so, they come across as virtuous. When they attack you in anger, they are saying, ‘Look, I am such a secular person that the mere mention of the word Hindu makes me mad. Look, I am so good and secular that any hint of a Hindu issue makes me seethe with anger. And now that I have shown I am more virtuous, I have the right to attack the others. My goodness gives me sanction to abuse, insult and be rude to anyone else who isn’t that virtuous.’
We sometimes mistakenly refer to these people in India as fake-liberals, pseudo-seculars or elitists. All they are doing is virtue signalling, showing how modern and progressive they are — so they look good to their virtual peers.
Hence, take a statement like, “Although we must have laws to protect women, some men are suffering due to fake domestic violence or fake harassment cases because some people are abusing the laws (something any lawyer or policeman dealing in such cases will attest).” Virtue signallers will jump on this and feast all day, calling it ‘sexist, anti-women, backward or whatever else’ because when you say that, you show that you are so equality-conscious.
Virtue signallers operate in many other arenas. They show their support for women’s cricket in their social feeds (though chances are they have never watched a women’s cricket match on TV in their lives).
Virtue signallers want to promote independent cinema over commercial cinema (though they don’t go and watch independent cinema in theatres). Virtue signallers want to show that they care about Dalits and Muslims, not because they actually care about Dalits and Muslims or do anything about it, but because stating so makes you look good on social media.
Beware of such utterly fake people, and avoid engaging in debate with them. They will tire and bore you to death with statements that don’t answer the issue at hand, but merely make them look good.
Virtue signalling is a reality of today’s social media. Because whenever we feel judged by a lot of people, we hide our true self and try to look good. It’s noise on the internet and, like trolls, must be ignored. We must debate issues by saying things as they are, for only then can a solution be found.
http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatime...he-rise-of-virtue-signallers-on-social-media/
(Though I am not making any bets from my side, I just know it is gonna happen)
