Sociality of hate: The transmission of victimization of LGBT+ people through social media

Abstract

Hate crimes carry many emotional and psychological detriments for those who are targeted because of who they are. The harms associated with hate are commonly theorized in the context of those directly targeted. Using a victimological lens, I consider how the harms of a mass anti-LGBT+ shooting in Orlando, Florida were carried across social media, indirectly victimizing LGBT+ people in the North East of England. This article examines seven distinct interviews conducted post-Orlando from a wider sample of 32. LGBT+ participants were victimized vicariously by receiving news of the Orlando shooting. They utilized social media to organize vigils, stand in solidarity with LGBT+ Floridians, and share in the emotional distress caused by the shooting. The findings contribute to our understandings of hate crime as a communicative tool, by examining the role of social media in carrying the emotional harms associated with hate. Through these in-depth narratives, this article encourages a conversation about how hate crimes, transmitted across social media, can victimize people who share the victimized identity with the direct victims.