Dealing with ghosts of actions past

Rise of social media brings up questions regarding how much of the past is “fair game” in the present

Ali Ulin / Asst. Opinion Editor / The USD Vista

In an age where actions are immortalized by social media accounts and the content that is posted has little to no limit, younger generations are faced with deciding what is acceptable and how long their posts should be relevant or applicable to their current situations. Starting at a very young age, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook permanently document everything from status updates of people’s everyday thoughts to what show they’re binging on Netflix to pictures and videos of drunken nights out. Now more than ever, the trial and error of one’s life choices and actions are documented forever. 

The percentage of colleges that actively check social media in regard to admissions decisions has declined in the past five years from 40 percent to 29 percent. According to a Kaplan survey administered in April 2018, 68 percent of colleges agreed that social media is “fair game” for reviewing applicants. Maturing and responsible teens and young adults need to keep this in mind when considering how their profiles might affect their educational future, especially within the realm of higher education. But rather than fearing the effects social media has on undergraduate admissions, the more tangible consequences are found in the post-graduate search for job placement and higher degrees. In college, with more freedom to engage in activities that might not be legal or socially acceptable (drinking, drugs, etc.), aspiring professionals need to be especially conscientious of their posting habits so as to not showcase any questionable choices. Many applicants for professional or educational opportunities report that their interviewer asked to see their social media profile or performed a social media check. Furthermore, in a 2017 survey conducted by CareerBuilder, 70 percent of employers screen a candidate’s social media, up from 60 percent in 2016. 

This type of permanence and publicity is a fairly new phenomenon and wasn’t around to haunt older generations. Without readily-available evidence from social media, generations of professionals got away with growing up and making irresponsible decisions with little to no repercussions as has been seen in very real and disturbing contexts. Relationships within certain power dynamics often result in little to no justice for those being taken advantage of. One such power dynamic played out in the confirmation process of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018. Despite Christine Blasey Ford’s public and grievous sexual assault accusation, Kavanaugh was still confirmed to sit on the Supreme Court. 

Taking a moment to examine the FBI investigation which followed the disturbing confirmation hearings, Justice Kavanaugh’s legal team used a few, very simple defense arguments: denying the occurrence of the assault, claiming that this was an elaborate conspiracy and an attempt by the Democratic Party to derail his confirmation, and questioning the relevance and frequency with which such things happen in high school. Focus in on Kavanaugh’s third argument– the sheer fact that his lawyers claimed that this was a common occurrence and misunderstanding of drunken high school students playing “seven minutes in heaven” alone is repulsive and misconstrued. But, his argument debating the relevance of the actions of a drunken 17-year-old is where a more complex aspect of the argument takes place. Kavanaugh’s argument as to the frequency with which events like these happen should have been considered a form of casual confession, and his lack of remorse should have been reason enough for the claims to be relevant. By allowing these arguments to suffice, Americans allowed his age, the time passed since the alleged assault, and discontent with the “lack of evidence” (a product of the times lacking the tools allotted to modern teenagers: cell phones and social media) supporting Ford’s allegations to justify his actions and excuse his behavior despite the publicizing of them. Neither of these should be acceptable nor treated as tangible evidence to prove or disprove his innocence. 

Of course, a case like this is an extreme example, but sadly it is all too familiar to women, especially with seemingly untouchable and powerful male counterparts. Anita Hill, in 1991, similarly accused Clarence Thomas, her supervisor and now a Supreme Court Justice, of sexual harassment while they worked together in the Department of Education. Hill, too, was unable to prove the misconduct due to a three-day FBI investigation that resulted in the opinion of the court that “the allegation was unfounded.” The two cases followed eerily similar trajectories. Both cases were extremely high-profile examples of women attempting to serve justice to men, and did not have a platform to document or prove their actions. Both consisted of a short and half-hearted investigation into the women’s claims against men by the FBI. Both were told their claims were irrelevant and false as they differed from the accounts their perpetrators told. Both ended abruptly with no real justice for the women. Both resolved with the nomination and confirmation of these men to the Supreme Court. Stories like these are frustratingly common with too many examples to count that have resulted in little to no repercussions for a powerful man whose monstrous actions toward women were not caught on tape the way they can be now. It is events like these that make the use of social media a positive influence and tool against discrimination, oppression, and prejudice against minorities and under-represented groups.

In February, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam’s picture in a yearbook during his time in medical school surfaced of him in blackface with a friend dressed in a KKK robe. Northam was elected just last year, and now Virginia is faced with the dilemma of how to deal with a publicly racist governor. The easy answer is to impeach him. With a population that is roughly 20 percent black and living in a society where morals and values of leaders have standards, histories of disregard and disrespect for social and political conditions should not be tolerated. Though these pictures were taken 23 years ago, Northam was a mature, grown man at the age of 37 and with no contrition for his actions, these indisputable allegations that associate with the evidence presented to the public should be enough to take Northam out of politics and political leadership for good. Northam’s actions were documented in the old-fashioned form of a yearbook; however, with the new powers of social media, catching bigots like him is made all the more possible.

Though discouraging incidents and events such as these have occurred, American society has pushed forward with the modern ability to combat oppressors and abusers as has been seen in protests like the Women’s March and movements like #MeToo and Time’s Up that are sweeping across the country, amplified by social media and using social media to promote their cause and hold perpetrators accountable. Nonetheless, society is now faced with the dilemma of deciding how far back into people’s past we should look to determine their values, personal abilities, and professional worth. 

High school and college students make errors in judgement and lots of mistakes. While not every immature decision should be held against someone for eternity, there is a line. Social media is an extremely persuasive force in today’s society, but with its new abilities come new rules to consider. In each platform’s terms and conditions, users agree with little knowledge that their content can be used publicly and that their posts are logged forever in user profiles. When posting, users must be wary about the content they want the world to have access to. Social media technically sets standards and regulations for its users to post in the form of age limits and content restrictions. However, social media needs to adjust and change to keep up with the times and decriminalize certain taboo behaviors such as underage drinking, use of certain substances, or otherwise that are common behaviors that are often targeted by politicians and authority to punish people of color and other historically oppressed groups. Although it also must be acknowledged that social media also holds people accountable for their actions and enforces forms of justice toward unacceptable behaviors such as racism, sexual harassment, and misogyny. These actions should and do have real-world consequences, especially within the realm of public opinion. While young generations should have the freedom to make mistakes while growing up, there is a necessity that people be held accountable for their actions. In the era of social media, people must learn what is and is not acceptable behavior.