Online Memorials
Online memorial sites are a sensitive issue. In principle, the sharing of photos, stories and memories in one easily accessible collection sounds beneficial for the memorial and reflective process, but in reality such sites can be subject to ill-will, trolls, and 'grief tourism'. What begins as a celebration of life can become a desecration of memory.
People deal with the passing of a loved one in many different ways, and the creation of an online memorial is just one of these ways. It helps a wider range of people mourn in the short-term but importantly remember in the long-term. The online memorial offers a place to go to remember, similar to a gravesite but offering much more: photos, memorabilia, the sharing of stories and cherished memories with the departed. Yet a public online memorial certainly has its dangers. They are often targeted by insensitive hackers and trolls for cheap 'entertainment' or slander.
A perhaps more personal and private form of online memorial is the creation of an invitation-only Facebook group. Memorial groups are set-up so friends and family, connected through Facebook (or other social media) can mourn together. They are certainly much harder to hack, and are less vulnerable to slander as the people accessing the group are often trusted friends and family only. I myself am a member of two such groups for departed friends, and I find it a beneficial means of remembrance. With both public and private sites there remains the issue of 'grief tourism'.
Grief tourism or 'dark tourism' is a long existing practice of visiting sites associated with death and tragedy. Museums, memorials and sites of natural disasters are visited by many people each year in order to pay respect or satisfy their curiosity, yet online grief tourism is often unpleasant for the families directly affected by tragedy. People come out of the woodwork to come onto online memorials, and while this can be seen as an act of compassion, it often cheapens the sincerity of the memorial. If someone who didn't particularly know the departed yet come to pay their respects on the online memorial, it raises questions of sincerity. People are often seen to be doing this to seem more compassionate and caring, in order to boost their own self-image. I for one have seen this first-hand on many occassions, and while it may be taboo to call someone out on it, its often a very thin veil that they hide behind.
Online memorials are very beneficial in mourning and remembrance, but they certainly come with dangers.
