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Social Media and the Black Travel Community: from Autonomous Space to Liberated Space

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Social Media and the Black Travel Community: from Autonomous Space to Liberated Space Proceedings of the 52nd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences | 2019 Social Media and the Black Travel Community: From Autonomous Space to Liberated Space Tonia Sutherland University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa [email protected] Abstract these groups use and adapt social media platforms and other digital tools to communicate, form identity This paper reports on findings from an ongoing study and community, and subvert cultures of oppression. of identity-based social media communities that Some scholars have addressed the broader racial subvert the architecture of internet and other digital politics of social media [1, 19], while others have tools to evolve autonomous (“safe”) spaces into specifically considered the use of social media liberated spaces. The community in question platforms by marginalized communities, addressing endeavors to provide safe spaces for information and online discourse and cultural performance [4, 5, 12, resource sharing. Two compelling trends were found. 13], online racialized identity construction [14, 20], The first involves entrepreneurship as a feature of racialized violence in online spaces [18, 21], and liberated spaces. The second involves secret, or social media activism and dissent [2, 8, 9, 15, 22]. “underground” communication hidden in open This study offers an intervention at the intersection of spaces as a liberatory practice. As part of discussing these concerns, examining how identity-based social these trends, the author introduces the idea of media communities subvert the architecture of liberated spaces and argues for their importance internet and other digital tools to evolve autonomous within discussions of the sociocultural aspects of spaces into spaces of liberatory potential. inclusive digital interfaces and digital cultures. In this paper, I extend the research on autonomous 1. Introduction space social media communities to expand understandings of how these safe spaces have also become places of liberation. In conceptualizing the Online social media communities offer members the liberated space, I direct my efforts at two distinct opportunity to establish and join spaces populated by categories of social media communities: Facebook similar people, or people with similar interests. Groups and Twitter hashtag communities. Many Membership in social media communities is social media communities have developed as lively voluntary and is often subject to approval by a spaces where people are able ask frank and community administrator. Some communities are challenging questions—without judgment—in invitation-only: membership requires invitation by a psychologically safe environments. Thus, they current member or the community administrator. As emerge as “safe” or “autonomous” spaces regardless autonomous spaces, social media communities also of the established level of community privacy. Social vary by online visibility: some are public, while psychologist Kurt Lewin introduced the idea of safe others are private or secret and only visible to spaces in his work on group dynamics and members. Because of these affordances, it has been organizational change management, which focused in common for social media communities to be particular, on the problems of minority or designed as autonomous, or “safe” spaces, where disadvantaged groups [16]. Lewin’s definition of a marginalized people can share their experiences with “group,” applies unambiguously to the social media marginalization and oppression. communities studied here: “... it is not the similarity or dissimilarity of individuals that constitutes a Over the past five years, a growing body of group, but interdependence of fate.” Organized scholarship has addressed the unique uses of social around the burgeoning Black Travel Movement, in media platforms by ethnic minorities and other which community (or “group”) trust can be a matter marginalized populations, examining the ways that of life and death, members of these social media URI: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/59657 ISBN: 978-0-9981331-2-6 Page 2186 (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) communities rely on the safety of engineered restaurants. As John A. Williams said, it required autonomous spaces, while at the same time “nerve and courage” to drive in America if you were collaboratively building liberatory spaces within Black [23]. them. To combat the tyranny of Jim Crow, and to offer 2. The Black Travel Movement Black travelers safe passage on American roads, in 1932, a postal worker in Harlem named Victor Hugo Green wrote The Negro Motorists Green Book “to Social media communities tend to form around a ​ give the Negro traveler information that will keep small number primary themes, including shared him from running into difficulties, embarrassments common backgrounds; like qualifications; and mutual and to make his trip more enjoyable [6].” hobbies and/or interests. Those with a shared Colloquially known as The Green Book, Green’s common background include assemblages such as ​ ​ book began as a New York publication, eventually family groups, schoolmates (past and present), and expanding to cover all of the United States and those with shared ethnic, religious, or other beyond in its international edition. Published identity-based traits. Social media communities that annually from 1936-1966, The Green Book had form around like qualifications often share similar ​ advertisements, recommendations, points of interest, occupational responsibilities or comparable job titles. and importantly, safety and preparedness tips. The Online communities also frequently form around ​ Green Book sold approximately 15,000 copies interests and hobbies such as sports, food, travel, ​ annually until 1964 when it began to be considered social causes, and political affiliations. Frequently obsolete following the passage of sweeping Civil there is categorical overlap: a group may be dedicated Rights legislation in the United States. Although to people of a given religious affiliation with a Green and The Green Book were criticized during particular interest in a social cause, for example. ​ Jim Crow as contributing to segregation rather than Another example is the growing community of Black fighting for integration, The Green Book did not offer Americans interested in travel. ​ ​ Black travelers the best place to stay or eat (like a modern-day Yelp!)—rather, it drew attention to what Once confined to occupational travel, the Black was often the only place to stay or eat; particularly in Travel Community has grown and evolved ​ places where the Black population was notably (and significantly since the 1940s. As Black Americans intentionally) low—what were commonly known as moved from agricultural labor in the South to sundown towns. industrial labor in the North, more people found themselves with disposable income and leisure time Increases in income and education, alongside a for travel. At the same time, the mass production of tech-savvy generation and the rise of social media personal automobiles made it possible for Black have converged to create a contemporary Black Americans to avoid travel on the segregated—and Travel Movement (BTM) analogous to the increase frequently dangerous—railway systems. Finally, the in Black travelers in the 1940s and 1950s. Although evolution of the American road map from pathfinders Victor Hugo Green hoped eventually there would not to the AAA TripTik made road navigation be a need for The Green Book, Black exponentially easier. The convergence of these Americans—eager to travel and see the world—still developments meant that more Black Americans do not feel safe. This is evidenced in the hashtag began to travel for leisure; unfortunately, leisure communities that have formed around hashtags such travel for Black Americans was stymied by as #travelingwhileblack and #sundowntowns. This oppressive Jim Crow laws that ensured policies of paper shares early findings from an ongoing study of separate—and unequal. Black travelers were digital instances of Green’s analog phenomena: risk frequently denied access to the basic requirements of and safety information sharing practices among the road travel: some traveled with buckets because Black travel community in autonomous spaces. public restrooms and roadside rest areas were restricted from use by Black people. They also traveled with extra gasoline and food because they could not use gas stations and were barred from Page 2187 3. Conceptualizing Autonomous and colleges and universities (as well as many other Liberated Spaces Black-identified spaces) have all emerged as safe spaces. For Black Americans, safe spaces are those places where one can be free of the oppressive Autonomous or “safe” spaces were first powers of whiteness and white supremacy. conceptualized by social psychologist Kurt Lewin in his work on group dynamics and organizational Over time, the terms safe space and autonomous change management. Lewin’s work focused, in space have been used interchangeably in the United particular, on the problems of minority or States to represent group spaces that have three disadvantaged groups in corporate spaces. Tasked primary attributes: a commitment to the physical and with developing leadership training for high-level psychological safety of all members; a commitment corporate executives, Lewin’s work addressed two to freedom from oppression; and a commitment to a questions: What is it about the nature and ​ common—often, but not always political—cause. characteristics of a particular group which causes it Autonomous
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