Since the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, social media has been abuzz with hashtags like “#BlackLivesMatter” and “#HandsUpDontShoot,” proving once again how effective sites like Twitter and Facebook can be at rallying people to a movement.
As the tragedies piled on like Eric Garner in New York and Tamir Rice in Cleveland, the movement swelled and painted a distorted picture of overwhelming support. But with the shooting of two NYPD officers Saturday, the hashtags started to reveal a much more deeply divided America.
Nowhere was this difference as stark as in New York City where dueling hashtags — one for the protests and one in support of the officers– competed for attention, Mashable reported.
Those focused on offering condolences to the families of the fallen officers, in addition to those arguing against the Ferguson and Garner protesters, have adopted the #BlueLivesMatter hashtag on Twitter, a play on the protester’s #BlackLivesMatter tag.
Both sides were also using #SilentNight for candlelight vigils taking place in NYC, but for different purposes.
Protesters called it a candlelight vigil “for justice” while cop supporters held vigils for the fallen officers.
The hashtag game also went beyond just support for protesters or for cops. The ugly circumstances surrounding Saturday’s shooting — the shooter targeted the officers because of the Brown and Garner deaths — sparked much meaner online conversations.
Rev. Al Sharpton was blamed for the attacks with the hashtag #PigSharpton and NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio faces an online campaign, #FireDeBlasio, for his resignation.
Some protesters also glorified the shooter and his last social media message by tweeting with his hashtag #ImPuttingWingsOnPigs.
These killings have sparked sharp reactions, but it looks like the latest horrific acts have divided the country even more.
