All Eyes on Rafah: the age of the infographic
If you were browsing Instagram last week, you likely saw at least one of three things: people sharing an AI-generated graphic that read ‘All eyes on Rafah’; people criticising those who shared the graphic; and people criticising those who criticised those who shared the graphic. Through all the discourse, it’s hard to tell if any of it really helped the plight of Palestinian people.
On Monday last week, an AI-generated graphic went viral in response to an Israeli airstrike on Rafah. Rafah is the supposed safe area of the Gaza Strip; a designated humanitarian zone for displaced people. After it was bombed on May 26th, the user @shahv4012 shared an AI-generated image of an imagined Rafah to his story, with the text ‘All eyes on Rafah’ spelled out in white tents in the centre. 48 hours after it was posted, it had been shared 44.7 million times. Several celebrities were among those reposting it, including Dua Lipa, Kehlani, and Jenna Ortega. But, once it had gone viral, many pro-Palestine activists began criticising those posting it, labelling it as another example of performative activism.
It is perhaps not surprising that the image received such a backlash. For some, the issue lay in the overly sanitised and artificial nature of the graphic. They noted the lack of information, call to action, or representation of actual Palestinians in the picture. Other complaints reflect a general fatigue with activism that takes place online. More active protestors believe this practice, branded as ‘slacktivism’, to be ineffective. But while some pro-Palestine activists condemned those sharing the graphic, others were quick to defend it. Amidst this controversy, or in fact because of this controversy, there’s never been so many people talking about Palestine.
This is not the first time a political movement has taken over social media. Many, in fact, have been comparing the virality of the graphic to Blackout Tuesday of June 2020. This was when millions of (largely white) users posted a black square to signal solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement following the death of George Floyd. #Blacksquare came about at a time when clicktivism was at its height, with lockdown constraining protest to the digital sphere and infographics dominating feeds.
But by this point many were tiring of infographic advocacy, and Blackout Tuesday became a symbol of the shallow instagramification of social justice (see Monitor Magazine’s Like Protest Subscribe April 2023). While effective at spreading a message, online movements are often denounced for their limited tangible impact. Some argue that they’re less about helping a cause than they are about signalling the virtue of the user to their audience. And while some claim that posting online can be a jumping point to more radical forms of protest, others say it gives the individual a false sense that they have done their bit, thus creating inaction. Infographics have also become a powerful tool for spreading misinformation, since anyone with a vague grasp of language and access to Canva can now turn their insights into media that is seen by millions.
Other critiques of the ‘All Eyes on Rafah’ post were less about online activism in general, but more to do with the weakness of the image itself. With no call to action, links to donate, or educational resources, it’s hard to tell what the graphic achieves. However, it appears that the bland, AI nature of the post was what ensured it could be shared so widely, as more explicit and informative content is often shadowbanned by Instagram’s strict censorship. Its virality could also lie in the graphic’s use of ‘Rafah’ instead of the more historically politicised terms of ‘Palestine’ or ‘Gaza’. People likely felt more comfortable sharing a graphic with the vague slogan ‘All eyes on Rafah’ than one that included the political weight of the word ‘Palestine’, or one that placed any blame on Israel. And, like watermelon emojis and ‘g-slide’, the term Rafah is yet to be repressed by Instagram’s algorithms, thus further enabling the image’s dissemination.
While its AI roots may have assisted its virality, the image remains artificial. In the last 7 months, there has been a never-ending well of upsetting media coming from Gaza and the West Bank, all of which is more informative than the graphic that went viral. It is regrettable that much of the West ignored the real stories of those suffering in favour of something created by a computer. For some, the graphic was not only artificial, but it actively obscured the truth of the situation. The place presented in the graphic – an enormous, never-ending land with blue skies and mountains – is nothing like the real Rafah. Right now, Rafah is bloody, cramped, and clouded in smoke. It is not vast but very small, 64 square km, which is around the size of an airport. To comprehend the true scale of Rafah is to understand the enormity of what is happening there; to know the desolation that would be caused by the 60 bombs that fell on the cramped area in just 48 hours.
Although it may feel ineffectual to share an AI-generated graphic to your story in the face of this horror, many have asserted the stand-alone value of having so many people talking about Palestine. Since the attacks began in October, Palestinians have specifically been asking the West to keep speaking about the issue by sharing posts on social media. After the graphic went viral on Tuesday, many celebrities who hadn’t previously been vocal began to speak out against Israel’s actions, including Katy Perry, David Beckham, Ariana Grande, and Mindy Kaling. This was a significant turning point, as, until recently, Palestine has been largely disregarded by the establishment.
Unlike the Black Lives Matter movement, which received widespread superficial support from the likes of Disney and Nancy Pelosi, supporting Palestine remains highly controversial for public figures. The recent blacklisting of both Susan Sarandon and Melissa Barberra for speaking up against Israel’s actions is evidence of this. For a matter as historically taboo as Palestine, just signalling your support is significant. The fact that over 50 million people displayed public solidarity with Palestine by sharing the graphic could be a significant indicator of a shift in consensus. A 2018 study found that it only takes 25% of a population to reverse major viewpoints. This could be the beginning of the tipping point. The censorship of the fight for Palestinian liberation, something that has repressed the movement since its inception, might finally be lifting.
But are people really talking about Rafah? The discourse around the graphic has meant there are fewer eyes on Rafah itself and more eyes on the debate surrounding the issue. Like a lot of online discussion, we’ve become distracted by infighting and risk forgetting why we were there in the first place. For those in the West, it is much easier to hold someone you know on Instagram to account than it is to hold Netanyahu or the Israeli government. It is much easier to write an essay about a graphic that went viral than it is to fully reckon with the fact that 45 refugees were killed while sheltering in a tent. It’s time for us all to shut our computers and go join our local organisation. Or, at the very least, remember what we’re really fighting for.
Has discourse replaced protest in the 21st century? To what extent have boots on the ground been substituted by likes and reposts, or is the fear that no one goes to protests anymore just another moral panic about the young? It’s irrefutably dire that our primary public squares for political discourse are now media platforms owned by tech billionaires, where polarisation is encouraged and figures like Bezos and Zuckerberg can dictate our elections. But, despite this all, protest is alive and kicking. Clicktivism, for the most part, is something that happens alongside in-person action, as opposed to replacing it. In just the last month, student encampments across the country have shown the young’s enthusiasm for IRL action. And a pro-Palestine protest in November was one of the largest marches in the UK’s history. The kids are alright. Despite social media’s best efforts, protests aren’t going anywhere.
