This chapter investigates how 30 black teenage girls engage with selfies to express themselves as heterosexual desirable beings on social media platforms. Using the concept of selfie-assemblage the chapter demonstrates how human and more-than-human entities are entangled in girls’ selfie cultures. Drawing from semi-structured interviews, I show how beauty filters, tight dresses and make-up produced capacities for feeling beautiful and heterosexually desirable. However, dominant ideologies of racialised beauty ideals (notions of ‘yellow bones’) rooted in heteronormative norms were found to reinforce hierarchies of femininities. Moreover, gender norms in online selfie cultures materialise gender inequalities and girls’ subordination. The value of this study lies in illustrating the complexity of girls’ engagement with sexy selfies and the entanglements formed when girls engage with human and more-than-human entities. Working with young people to raise awareness of the gendered and racialised production of selfie cultures is important, as is the recognition of heterosexual norms. Moreover, it is vital for online spaces to engage in ethical digital justice to ensure safer spaces for all.

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Gender, Race and Sexuality in Teenage Girls’ Selfie Cultures

  • Wendy Nhlangulela

摘要

This chapter investigates how 30 black teenage girls engage with selfies to express themselves as heterosexual desirable beings on social media platforms. Using the concept of selfie-assemblage the chapter demonstrates how human and more-than-human entities are entangled in girls’ selfie cultures. Drawing from semi-structured interviews, I show how beauty filters, tight dresses and make-up produced capacities for feeling beautiful and heterosexually desirable. However, dominant ideologies of racialised beauty ideals (notions of ‘yellow bones’) rooted in heteronormative norms were found to reinforce hierarchies of femininities. Moreover, gender norms in online selfie cultures materialise gender inequalities and girls’ subordination. The value of this study lies in illustrating the complexity of girls’ engagement with sexy selfies and the entanglements formed when girls engage with human and more-than-human entities. Working with young people to raise awareness of the gendered and racialised production of selfie cultures is important, as is the recognition of heterosexual norms. Moreover, it is vital for online spaces to engage in ethical digital justice to ensure safer spaces for all.