Meera Atkinson
Fads come and go and, while some conform to social norms, others confront them. The flash mob craze is a case in point: social statement, performance art or childish hoax?
Unpack the issues...
Wikipedia defines a flash mob as “a large group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual action for a brief time, then quickly disperse,” adding that flash mobs are mobilised via telecommunications, social media or viral emails.
The flash mob concept was created in New York City by Bill Wasik, senior editor of Harper’s Magazine, as a social experiment.
In the first successful flash mob, over 100 New Yorkers converged on the ninth floor of Macy’s, a massive department store, to pretend to shop for a 'love rug' for their fictitious commune. The group baffled and overwhelmed staff for some minutes before inexplicably disappearing as suddenly as they had arrived. Since then flash mobs have taken place all over the world. They even flash mob in Mumbai.
The ABC website 'News in Science' section ran a story on flash mobs in 2003, several months after the first flash mob was staged, in which it quoted Bill Wasik as saying:
"It's a spectacle for spectacle's sake—which is silly, but is also, as I've discovered somewhat to my surprise, genuinely transgressive, which is part of its appeal... People feel like there's nothing but order everywhere, and so they love to be a part of just one thing that nobody was expecting."
However, there are suggestions that Wasik’s thinking may have been less generous and that flash mobs were designed to mock hipsters and people’s willingness to conform to the next big thing, prompting The Vancouver Sun to observe that "it may have backfired on him... [Wasik] may instead have ended up giving conformity a vehicle that allowed it to appear nonconforming".
Whatever the original motives, the flash mob phenomenon is now being employed by those with particular agendas around social justice issues. Adrian Greenwood, Young Adults Discipleship Educator at the Synod of Victoria and Tasmania, was inspired to organise a mob by footage of a 'freeze mob' in Times Square in which a huge group of people froze on the spot.
Watching Youtube footage of the event Adrian was struck by an onlooker who walked around the frozen group saying something to the effect of, “What’s going on? I don’t understand. It must be a protest".
“He was just responding to what they did,” says Adrian. “I was working on the Stop the Traffik campaign at the time and I thought, ‘Wow, that’s a clever way of stopping the traffic'. So I gathered people together and started doing it.”
Adrian initiated the first Stop the Traffik freeze flash mob in 2007 to raise awareness around human trafficking. “We got people to go and freeze on the steps of Flinders Street station holding information on the Stop the Traffik campaign and people would come and get it off us. It’s basically culture jamming."
He’s kicked off several other freeze flash mobs since then. He has also coordinated a drum mob, in which someone play-acts dropping dead to the bang of a drum every few minutes, to raise awareness of the Make Poverty History campaign. This mob also employs banners and megaphones.
Adrian believes that flash mobs make perfect sense in the activist context and that they can make a difference. “I think they’re a good idea in that they raise awareness and create a new space for the conversation around whatever issue you’re engaging,” he says.
“Activism should be fun and this creates a story people can talk about. It’s a form of public demonstration but instead of marching we give the message in some creative manner then disappear.”
He also sees a growing interest in the notion of 'submersion' — the idea underpinning activist flash mobbing, service and engagement with communities.
“The confidence that comes from seeing that we can be ordinary radicals has developed.”
Unpack the issues...
- Do you think people pay more attention to a message if it's delivered in a fun way?
- Are flash mobs just a fad, or can they create real social change?
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written by Phillip , October 06, 2009
It's the first time I've heard of this form of activism, but it sounds really good, and I admire these people who are prepared to make a stand on issues regarding social justice and equality.
written by Russell Greenwood , October 14, 2009
Who did this action and where do I find out more about these activities?
written by alison (editor) , October 16, 2009
Hi Russell - we've added some 'read more' links to the article which should help you find out more about Adrian. You can also read a profile story about him here: http://www.thetransitlounge.co...unity.html
Alison
written by David Armstrong , October 27, 2009
I was involved in one of the drum flash mobs for Make Poverty History at NCYC 09 and it was so effective. Some great responses, and it was genuinely fun for us as well.
written by Age , November 04, 2009
Hi Guys want to go to a festival and cause a little mischief?
This Sunday (12:30-1pm) inside the Marronah Festival we are doing the STT freeze action with our friends from Ringwood Uniting.
http://morepraxis.org.au/stop-the-traffik-freeze-marronda-festival/
also
Learn more and show your support for the campaign to stop human trafficking. Go to the website http://www.stopthetraffik.org.au and sign the global declaration against human trafficking.
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