#I’mStaying page reaches one million followers
TRENDING since its formation, #I’mStaying has to date garnered support from more than one million hope-filled South Africans across the country.
It all started when Jarette Petzer posted a positive and optimistic video clip on his page. A friend then suggested he start a Facebook page dedicated to messages of a similar tone; apolitical, positive and all inclusivity, culminating in a sense of shared hope.
The page allows users to share personal experiences, which prompted them to want to remain in the country despite its many challenges.
South Africans from diverse socio-economic backgrounds and across provinces used the platform to share these sentiments, with many submissions leading to uncontrollable laughter or moments of complete heartfelt awe.
“We began to share stories of hope. We began to share in each other’s cultures, and the most breathtaking imagery of landscapes that make up this most beautiful country that we call home, ” shared Petzer.
He said: “These stories cut through the rhetoric of fear and division that was consistently being pushed onto us by mainstream and social media.
“It was like a hot knife through butter and so began the spreading of a stronger sense of unification among all of our different races and cultures that make this nation what it is.
“These stories and the sharing in each others’ lives for the first time helped us all to see through the looking glass and reach out to the other side. A place forgotten or one which had never truly been explored, until now.”
The group, now a registered nonprofit company, has three full-time employees and about 140 volunteer moderators who manage the page.
#I’mStaying is described as a collective civil movement through which the sharing of personal narratives and shared interests, hopes and dreams foster inclusivity and uplifts hope for South Africans often on the brink of dread.