There’s been recent growth concerning a hashtag called #Blackout. It’s a celebratory event created this year by Tumblr user expect-the-greatest. He says, “I got inspired to propose Blackout day after thinking ‘Damn, I’m not seeing enough black people on my dash’. Of course I see a constant amount of black celebrities but what about the regular people? Where is their shine?” The first Blackout took place the first Friday of March, intending to stand out from Black History Month.
#Blackout consists of the black community on Tumblr, Twitter and Instagram posting their selfies with the hashtag #Blackout or #BlackSelfieDay. The community would then search for these tagged photos and make sure that they get a significant amount of notes and likes. By doing this, it was a chance for them to celebrate and recognize the beauty of being black in a world that tells them otherwise.
The idea of #Blackout was met with some resistance. To the outsider, it seemed exclusionary and discriminatory. Confused and irate bloggers claimed that #Blackout was self-segregation, since non-black people were asked to not use the hashtag on their selfies. Some tried to organize a #Whiteout, post gore and lynchings using the #Blackout tag, or intentionally overwrite #Blackout into a proposed Selfie Week where all people have the chance to post something. Despite the empty threats of naysayers, Blackout was a widespread success.
#Blackout became a top trending hashtag on Tumblr and Twitter. The login screen for Tumblr showed the most popular black selfies. Stories were told, confidence was raised, and a community was strengthened. Khalid Rosemin, fourth-year illustration major, participated in the #Blackout himself. “It made me happy at the end of the day to see so much appreciation of black people. I do think that it was something that should have happened everyday instead of one day. I understand why its not though. Things like this can start every day and it’ll lose its flame very quickly. Although it should that people should recognize the importance of #Blackout and continue like that everyday.”
The creators of #Blackout are now trying to create an official brand which they are currently trying to get fundraising for. The proposed charitable corporation would be able to take the movement to another level, moving from the Internet to the real world. There’s been talk of meetups and festivals in the near future, however they would need to become legal first. Legality would allow them to protect the hashtag and idea from anyone else who’d want to alter it and to be taken seriously when these legal matters are involved. It would also allow them to legally air up to other charitable entities to help raise and donate money for their causes. Who knows? #Blackout Inc might be coming to a city near you in the future.