Civil-Rights Activism Moves Online

Civil-rights groups are increasingly using online social networks to attract attention to their causes, writes The Washington Post.

Among the new groups started to spur online activism is ColorofChange.org, a group whose founding was prompted by the racial concerns that erupted in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. It now has an e-mail list of 800,000 people.

James Rucker, a co-founder of the group said his organization’s goal is to make it easy to get involved in social change. “We try to create opportunities for everyday people who are not going to be your in-the-street activists.”

Veteran civil-rights groups are also using the social networks. The NAACP now has 400,000 members on its online advocacy list.

One reason for the growing interest in social media is new data showing that minorities outpace other racial and ethnic groups in their use of Facebook, Twitter, and other networks. Minorities are more than twice as likely to use Twitter as whites, according to a study by the Pew Internet & Family Life Project.