OPED: Educate yourself and help Nepal

By Krystal Lau,
Bluedevilhub.com Staff–

Today, the gap between different countries in the world is larger than ever. It is strange to think that in the United States, we can live unaffected, while in Nepal the earthquake on April 30 has killed more than 6,300 people.

It is easy to avoid learning about these disasters around the world. On our Facebook news feeds or Instagram profiles you are more likely to find photos of what your friends had for lunch rather than actual news. This is increasingly becoming a problem as social media sites slowly replace news sites.

According to the Pew Research Center, 64 percent of U.S. adults use social media sites to find news. Yet unlike newspapers, which do not shy away from news of natural disasters or protests, most of the news found on social media sites is entertainment-based.

Print newspapers like the Sacramento Bee will show international or political news on their front page, but most Facebook links lead to popular culture articles. In fact, according to the Pew Research Center, 73 percent of the news on Facebook is about entertainment. This is why Americans increasingly are able to live without being aware of what is happening in the world.

Nepal needs our help. Though we are so removed that we may not be able to feel it, or see the effects of the earthquake, there are others who are not in our situation.

We cannot remain ignorant, we have to pay attention to current events, and we have to care. We can help by raising awareness through social media, or donating to the cause.

Three days after the disaster close to five million tweets related to Nepal had been published. The Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have collectively donated over $535 million in emergency funds. We can do our part to help.