By Ethel Pang, AWARE intern

On 11 April, AWARE hosted the launch of The Local Rebel’s second zine. The Local Rebel is a Singapore-based collective comprising a group of youths who seek to educate and empower fellow young people on intersectional feminism.

The group started on social media back in 2015, and they have accomplished so much in the three years since their inception. TLR is a recipient of AWARE’s Power Fund, which provides support to emerging feminist organisations, and have already published two zines. Each zine was carefully planned to create an educational resource contextualised to Singaporean sociopolitics.

More than 50 attendees attended the launch, which kicked off with a short introduction to TLR and the zine. Attendees participated in a short game of “Intersectionality Bingo” as well as a panel discussion with TLR’s team members and contributors. The panel discussion broadened the audience’s understanding of intersectionality and led to a thoughtful discussion about what it means in the context of Singapore.

An interesting question that was raised was “how effective is online activism, really?” There has been a lot of criticism towards online activism, accusing online activists as being nothing more than “keyboard warriors”, or people who defend “social justice” online but not having much impact in the real world.

However, the panelists believe that online activism can be very beneficial in terms of enabling faster, wider communication; many recent rights movements had their beginnings in the online sphere first before moving on to the offline world. Additionally, it can be a good first step for many who are interested in advocacy work. It also helps individuals find their “tribe” or like-minded individuals that can build a supportive community online, which can then precipitate genuine offline relationships. This was illustrated by how many of the panelists and audience members seem to have interacted previously only as internet friends, but have now formed social circles offline as well. Online activism is not only a legitimate form of activism but also a very crucial one especially in this day and age.

What is perhaps most remarkable about this event was that, alongside the core members of The Local Rebel themselves, most of the participants were youths. This really emphasised one of the key strengths of the budding organisation – with their adept use of social media and online activism, they truly managed to capture a substantial following comprising local teens and youths. This feat is not to be underestimated, and brings them closer to their goal – of having the younger generation take on the mantle of advocacy and enabling change in Singapore.

You can find The Local Rebel on their social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and Instagram) and be sure to purchase a copy of their latest zine here!