Departmental Papers (ASC)
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of this Version
2018
Publication Source
New Media and Society
Volume
20
Issue
5
Start Page
1868
Last Page
1888
DOI
10.1177/1461444817709276
Abstract
In this research we examine the advocacy and community building of transgender women on Twitter through methods of network and discourse analysis and the theory of networked counterpublics. By highlighting the network structure and discursive meaning-making of the #GirlsLikeUs network, we argue that the digital labor of trans women, and especially trans women of color, represents the vanguard of struggles over self-definition. We find that trans women on Twitter, led by Janet Mock and Laverne Cox, and in response to histories of misrepresentation and ongoing marginalization and violence, deliberately curate an intersectional networked counterpublic that works to legitimize and support trans identities and advocate for trans autonomy in larger publics and counterpublics.
Keywords
transgender, counterpublics, Twitter, hashtags, online advocacy, network analysis, discourse analysis, #GirlsLikeUs
Recommended Citation
Jackson, S. (2018). #GirlsLikeUs: Trans advocacy and community building online. New Media and Society, 20 (5), 1868-1888. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444817709276
Date Posted: 27 February 2020
This document has been peer reviewed.
Comments
At the time of publication, author Sarah Janet Jackson] was affiliated with Northeastern University. Currently, She is a faculty member at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania.