In a remarkable tale of having no skin in the game, 25-year-old Stephanie Archer avoids speaking out against injustice at any cost as she is significantly more averse to being seen as “virtue signaling” than she is to actual oppression.
“When white people try to be allies, they so often miss the mark,” says Stephanie, who is white. “No one wants to be that cringe person, and that’s why I just don’t engage.”
While there is something to be said for knowing when to take a step back, Stephanie is so many steps back she is not even within earshot of the conversation.
“Whenever I become more aware of the deep inequities within this country and perpetuating by this country throughout the globe, I feel deeply concerned,” Stephanie says. “But whenever I go to share something having to do with those inequities, I feel deeply concerned that people will judge me for virtue signaling, and that’s a concern that actually affects my life.”
In a commitment to this value, Stephanie avoids sharing petitions, requests for mutual aid, or under-reported news to any of her platforms.
“I don’t want people to think I’m some sort of keyboard warrior,” says Stephanie. “So that’s why I don’t do anything behind the screen, or anywhere.”
Stephanie’s dedication to not committing any social justice faux pas extends beyond just what she chooses not to share.
“I don’t want to be seen as jumping on the bandwagon of whatever cause that’s not even related to me,” Stephanie explains. “People shouldn’t weigh in on issues they’re not informed about, and a lot of things I see pop up on my timeline would take a lot of effort to inform myself on, so I just sort of keep scrolling.”
While some people feel that the often life-or-death stakes of oppression outweigh the stakes of how someone might perceive Stephanie on social media, she doesn’t see it that way.
“I’ve got no business in affairs that I just indirectly benefit from,” Stephanie says. “I mean, racism is horrible, but if someone thought I was virtue signaling? I simply couldn’t survive that.”
