Facebook 'activism'

How much clout does Facebook have in Canadian politics, really?

We may be about to find out, thanks to the online group Canadians Against Proroguing Parlaiment. This group, founded by Edmontonian Chris White just before New Year's, was up to 150,000 members as of this morning (Jan. 11, 2010) and is now encouraging its members to organize local protest events to show the governing Conservatives just how angry they are at Stephen Harper's decision to shut down Parliament until after the Winter Olympics. Harper was dismissive of the complaints in comments last week, suggesting the Opposition parties would be really upset about the government's move when they got back from their Christmas holidays. The Liberals were out this past weekend with attack ads, slamming the government for being anti-democratic. The Facebook group, meanwhile, was drawing fire from talk radio conservatives, who questioned whether all the online anger really meant anything in political terms. This, in turn, prompted a Vancouver online politics expert to argue that Facebook is the new face of political action in Canada and is ignored by old-style politicians at their peril.

White and his supporters believe their campaign is having an effect but of course you would expect them to say that. Their efforts to get those who joined the Facebook group to get out and march betrays them a little, however. They seem to have grasped one basic truth about Internet activism, which is that online outrage is easy for politicians to ignore, as long as it doesn't translate into action in the actual arena, which is the street and, ultimately, the ballot box. Obama Nation, the best example we have of an online movement that ultimately turned an election, was only able to achieve its objectives by leaving cyberspace and entering the actual political marketplace. For many of these activists, this included joining a party, mobilizing others to do the same, campaigning in an election and getting out the vote on election day. Setting up a Facebook group pales in comparison to this list of assignments. That is why old style politicians like Harper and his supporters are, and will be able to dismiss groups like CAPP: Because they haven't shown their activism extends to the real world. But as the Obama campaisn demonstrates, such activism can make a huge difference, as soon as its practitioners engage in meaningful political action, on the politicians' turf. Or until we move the whole political process online.