“My hair, my crown”. Examining black Brazilian women’s anti-racist discursive strategies on social media

ABSTRACT

For a long time, Brazil has fostered the image of a post-racial society; however, data reveals that: a) racism against black women remains strongly ingrained in the collective mind-set, b) social media has become a breeding ground for the construction and dissemination of racist ideologies, and c) black women encompass the predominant target of racist discourses on social media. Thus, this qualitative study explores anti-racist discourses fostered by black Brazilian women on social media. Employing critical discourse analysis in a selection of publicly available Facebook posts, the study reveals that narratives praising an Afro hairstyle embody a relevant political positioning resisting Brazil’s deep-seated gendered racism. They aim, first, to challenge Brazil’s hegemonic “whitened” beauty standard; second, to convey a renewed perception of black esthetics as a legitimate source of ethnic identity; and, finally, they represent a strong symbolic element to manifest black women’s agency and empowerment.

RESUMO

Observa-se que durante muito tempo, o Brasil tem promovido a imagem de uma sociedade pós-racial; no entanto, dados revelam que: a) o racismo contra as mulheres negras permanece fortemente arraigado na mentalidade coletiva; b) as redes sociais se tornaram um terreno fértil para a construção e disseminação de ideologias racistas; e c) as mulheres negras compreendem o alvo predominante de discursos racistas nas redes sociais. Sendo assim, este estudo qualitativo explora discursos anti-racistas promovidos por mulheres negras brasileiras nas redes sociais. Empregando análise crítica do discurso em uma seleção de postagens publicamente disponíveis no Facebook, o estudo revela que as narrativas que elogiam o cabelo estilo Afro incorporam um posicionamento político relevante que resiste ao racismo de gênero profundamente arraigado do Brasil. Eles visam, primeiro, desafiar o padrão de beleza hegemônico “embranquecido” do Brasil; segundo, transmitir uma percepção renovada da estética negra como fonte legítima de identidade étnica; e, finalmente, eles representam um forte elemento simbólico para manifestar a agência e o empoderamento das mulheres negras.

KEYWORDS:

• Black women
• social media
• critical discourse analysis
• anti-racism
• gendered racism
• critical race studies

PALABRAS CHAVE:

• Mulheres negras; redes sociais; análise crítica do discurso, anti-racismo, racismo de gênero, estudo crítico do racismo

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Luiz Valério de Paula Trindade

Luiz Valério P. Trindade holds a PhD in Sociology by the University of Southampton (UK). His areas of scholarship and research interests encompass the construction and dissemination of hate speech on social media, critical race studies, and social representation of ethnic minorities on means of mass communication. He has already been published, for instance, by the Annals of Social Science & Management Studies, Discover Society, Ethnic and Racial Studies, International Network for Hate Studies, Social Science Space, and The Conversation.