Tragedy is Trending: Hashtags, Resistance, and Digital Activism After the Christchurch Mosque Attacks

Tragedy is Trending is written in response to experiences of solidarity shared via the #TheyAreUs hashtag that went viral following the terror attack on Muslim communities in Otautahi, Christchurch in March 2019, and questions commonly held assumptions by users about the non-discriminatory nature of Aotearoa New Zealand politics and society.It argues that the use of what the author calls ‘collectivising hashtags’, i.e., hashtags characterised by their use of pronouns to inclusively identify with Others, affords new opportunities for self-expression that may simultaneously empower and compromise affected communities.It explores the clever and imaginative ways that digital counterpublics subvert online interactions through strategic use of digital architecture, labour, visibility, and invisibility when addressing hashtags and social media platforms as racialised performances of self. This book encourages hashtag activists to think critically about the affecting nature of their online pra