People don’t acknowledge the role social media played. Social media rose to what it is under Obama. Before then, we didn’t have access to people’s personal thoughts and feelings, and couldn’t easily speak to people with similar beliefs. White people felt comfortable saying things they couldn’t say before because of political correctness. When we started fighting back, and getting them fired, it’s “Why is it all of a sudden racist?” It was always racist, we just weren’t there to hear it.
Add black people feeling more confident with the image of a black President, and white people hate when we feel good about ourselves. Plus, social media bots put out fake tweets instigating and stoking fires, and YouTube personalities gained more popularity.