Your House Will Pay

There are multiple types of activists and activisms throughout Your House Will Pay. Some types of activism are portrayed as overly performative, some as predatory or problematic, and others as more authentic. Cha also seems to suggest that some forms of activism are more effective than others. For instance, in the final scene, the protestors begin turning their outrage at injustice in America into hatred for Grace, but Shawn diagnoses this form of protest as only self-serving: While outrage can affect change by making a cause heard, weaponizing outrage to harm individuals is not, according to Shawn, doing something.

Miriam’s boyfriend Blake, and to an extant Miriam herself, are examples of activism that are more performative than effective. Blake is a wealthy white man who directly benefits from his identity by writing shows for the white male demographic. He uses social media to provide public evidence that he is a feminist and an ally to people of color, but this is not evidence of actual community engagement—only that he has the “right” opinions. Grace even suspects that Miriam only attends protests as material for posting photos on social media and benefiting from online engagement (54), as if she wouldn’t attend protests otherwise.