Identidade de gênero, (in)visibilidade e militância trans nos canais Mandy Candy e Thiessita do youtube

Abstract

This Master's research addresses the narratives presented in the videos of Amanda Guimarães and Thiessa Woinbackk, the trans digital influencers with the largest number of followers on YouTube in Brazil. The objectives of the study are: a) to understand their positions when confronted with cissexist heteronormativity, while related to the exposure of themselves and their performance in the videos; b) understand how their experiences are presented as a reference for body aesthetics, consumption and activism for the audience; and c) discuss your trans activism online. Twelve videos were analyzed, considering the performative character of the narratives and also the imagery composition of this material, with the theoretical- methodological framework derived from Social Communication, Critical Social Psychology and Contemporary Critical Theory. It is discussed in this dissertation that the publicization of Amanda and Thiessa's life trajectories reveals how the exposure of the self on the internet can potentiate the debate about the political-militant character of gender identity and the agency of trans (in) visibility. It can also offer subsidies for the critique of social inclusion through consumption, a discourse supported by the neoliberal logic widely disseminated by YouTube and which reduces militant claims to an individual search for status as a digital influencer. We see that political identity, rather than the claim of unity or homogenization, is constructed in the videos through Amanda and Thiessa's challenge to the reductionist assumptions that fetishize them and the sharing of their personal stories and positions with their audience. The analysis highlights the potential of the narratives and debates that youtubers present to their followers and their cis and trans followers on YouTube, as they favor empathy in relation to the difficulties experienced by the narrators and mobilize them to confront common oppressions. In addition, driven by the willingness to speak openly about their life trajectories and by the forceful questioning of the way they are made invisible, the dialogue between youtubers and followers can contribute to the transformation of perceptions and values about the trans experience. Amanda and Thiessa's narratives denounce the sexualization of trans women in the media and the social stigmatization of transsexuality and bring to light the tension that trans women experience in the search for “passability” required by ideals of female beauty. Considering that the performance of youtubers is marked by the monetization of the posted content, the videos also reveal the tensions of LGBT + online activism in the face of the demands of the entertainment market and the rules of operation of the platforms. In this sense, it is necessary to remain alert to the appropriation of militant discourse by large entertainment and consumer business conglomerates, so that both individual activism and the online organization with the LGBT+ community are effectively credited to the people who use them in favor of better living conditions. recognition, although there are algorithmic limitations to visibility.