This Is Who I Am: Instagram as Counterspace for Shared Gendered Ethnic Identity Expressions

Abstract

Dominant media stereotypes, oppression, and cultural expectations within diasporic communities exert pressure on Western women of South Asian descent. This research examines the way these individuals use Instagram as a counterspace to create and share gendered ethnic identity (GEI) expressions to counter oppression and promote well-being. In doing so, this study answers the call to advance research on genders, markets, and culture by exploring GEI as a sociocultural, intersectional construct. Based on visual data analysis and the extant literature, we posit a framework of social media as a counterspace for shared GEI expressions. This framework introduces three novel challenging processes (acts of intragroup questioning, acts of intragroup alliance, and narratives of possibility) that participants use to foster just representation and collective well-being.