Black Lives Matter app lets social media users mark themselves 'unsafe' in America
A new social media tool is making it extremely and soberingly clear how racism threatens the safety of black Americans.
Mark Yourself Unsafe, a web app that Black Lives Matter organizers modeled after Facebook Safety Check, allows black social media users to symbolically mark themselves "unsafe" throughout the entire United States. The tool officially launched on Jan. 17, and it serves to highlight the current threats the black community faces across the nation -- from economic inequality to police violence and countless other forms of racial bias.
The app was launched as part of the Movement for Black Lives' Week of Action, which encourages supporters of racial equality to get involved in daily activist-oriented tasks between Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Inauguration Day.
"The truth is, black people have never been safe in America."
The launch of the app, which Black Lives Matter created in partnership with ad agency J. Walter Thompson New York, was intentionally timed to the inauguration of Donald Trump.
"The truth is, black people have never been safe in America. They weren't safe before Nov. 8 and they would not have been safe if Hillary had been elected," Brent Choi, chief creative officer at J. Walter Thompson New York, told Fast Company. "However, there is a feeling -- shared by many minorities -- that under the new government they are even more unsafe. So, while nothing has changed, everything has changed."
Social media users can share their "unsafe" statuses on both Facebook and Twitter. An accompanying message says: "Being Black in America is a national emergency. Black people are being attacked and murdered while doing day-to-day activities. Let the world know how you feel. #BlackLivesMatter #MarkYourselfUnsafe."
So far, nearly 1,600 people have marked themselves unsafe in the United States using the tool.
"Being Black in America is a national emergency."
There's also an option for non-black social media users to post in a sign of solidarity. That button reads: "I'm not Black, but I support Black lives."
While the tool is reflective of the social and political environment black Americans have been facing for years, the feature is especially telling of what entering a Trump presidency means for the black community.
Trump has often been critiqued for displaying racist behavior, and he was endorsed by the KKK during his campaign.
Katie Dupere was a Social Good reporter at Mashable from May 2015 to July 2017, covering activism, identities and social impact. Prior to her work with Mashable, Katie penned pieces about queerness, body positivity, sex and relationships for Gurl. She also previously contributed LGBTQ news coverage to PinkNews.
