Misogynoir Transformed - (Intersections) by Moya Bailey

About the Book

"This book uses the Twitter, YouTube, and Tumblr productions of Black women as evidence that negative ideas about Black women can be transformed. Misogynoir describes the uniquely co-constitutive racialized and sexist violence that befalls Black women"--

Book Synopsis

Where racism and sexism meet--an understanding of anti-Black misogyny

When Moya Bailey first coined the term misogynoir, she defined it as the ways anti-Black and misogynistic representation shape broader ideas about Black women, particularly in visual culture and digital spaces. She had no idea that the term would go viral, touching a cultural nerve and quickly entering into the lexicon. Misogynoir now has its own Wikipedia page and hashtag, and has been featured on Comedy Central's The Daily Show and CNN's Cuomo Prime Time. In Misogynoir Transformed, Bailey delves into her groundbreaking concept, highlighting Black women's digital resistance to anti-Black misogyny on YouTube, Facebook, Tumblr, and other platforms.

At a time when Black women are depicted as more ugly, deficient, hypersexual, and unhealthy than their non-Black counterparts, Bailey explores how Black women have bravely used social-media platforms to confront misogynoir in a number of courageous--and, most importantly, effective--ways. Focusing on queer and trans Black women, she shows us the importance of carving out digital spaces, where communities are built around queer Black webshows and hashtags like #GirlsLikeUs.

Bailey shows how Black women actively reimagine the world by engaging in powerful forms of digital resistance at a time when anti-Black misogyny is thriving on social media. A groundbreaking work, Misogynoir Transformed highlights Black women's remarkable efforts to disrupt mainstream narratives, subvert negative stereotypes, and reclaim their lives.

Review Quotes

"[Bailey's] book is a good example of how to build theory through defining terms and tracing their trajectory alongside currently accepted terminology and concepts."-- "Communication Research Trends"

"Black feminist scholar Moya Bailey's excellent collection of essays Misogynoir Transformed: Black Women's Digital Resistance provides important insight into how black women utilize digital media to amplify their voices amid vitriol from a white, cisgender, and heteronormative majority...Bailey successfully provides a captivating glance into Black women's digital and offline resistance in the wake of an array of relevant social justice movements."-- "Synoptique"

"Misogynoir Transformed is a resounding, deftly reported manifesto centering the work of transformative Black women seeking one another in a culture that refuses to see us and center us. Moya Bailey reminds us that we are our liberators and have always had the tools to seek, see and celebrate ourselves."--Janet Mock, New York Times bestselling author of Redefining Realness and Surpassing Certainty

"Misogynoir Transformed is meticulously researched and an extraordinary example of Black feminist studies as an interdisciplinary project. It is brilliant in its exploration of the ways in which Black women, especially queer, nonbinary, agender, gender variant and trans women resist misogynoir in various media in their roles as 'digital alchemists.' The book underscores the urgency of reimagining how we define women's social movements given the use of social media platforms among Black women and girls in their mitigation of misogynoir."--Beverly Guy-Sheftall, editor of Words of Fire: An Anthology of African-American Feminist Thought

"Bailey's aims are ambitious. She's not interested in just shining a light on misogynoir; she's interested in its destruction. In a voice that is scholarly yet accessible, she tackles media culture from television and film to Tumblr to YouTube web series, to hashtags, revealing how different media contribute to, transform and/or challenge the pervasive circulation of misogynoir and, importantly, how Black people deploy digital activism to resist."-- "NPR Books"

"Groundbreaking scholar in LGBTQ+ studies, Dr. Moya Bailey...is the author of Misogynoir Transformed: Black Women's Digital Resistance, [which] focuses on queer and trans Black women, examining their use of social media to combat anti-Black misogyny."-- "Diverse, Issues in Higher Education"

"In her new book, Misogynoir Transformed, Bailey takes an in-depth look at the histories and contemporary manifestations of racist misogyny toward Black women in media, analyzing everything from YouTube web series and Tumblr archives to Black women in Hollywood. Through a combination of thorough research and nuanced cultural criticism, Bailey analyzes how various forms of media have upheld, troubled, and transformed misogynoir."-- "Bitch.com"

"In sum, Misogynoir Transformed is a timely, significant work that squarely advances Black feminist literature into the fields of 21st-century communication and social interaction studies. The author introduces several terms into the feminist lexicon--misogynoir, digital alchemy, worldbuilding--all of which create a strong foundation for more in-depth ethnographic inquiry that will be useful for researchers, practitioners, and activists examining racial and gender disparities to work toward a more equitable future."-- "Choice"

"In this much-anticipated text, Moya Bailey examines misogynoir--a term she coined--and how Black women work to disrupt racist misogyny, to reclaim their autonomy and to tell their own stories, particularly in precarious digital spaces."-- "Ms.com"

"Moya Bailey has written a powerful book that explores the reach and impact of her groundbreaking idea--misogynoir. Bailey centers her analysis on what she calls the margins of Black womanhood, illustrating both the many ways misogynoir has negatively shaped the life chances of Black women, and the many ways cis, queer and trans Black women and nonbinary, agender and gender variant Black folks are using digital tools to resist harm, define their complexity and create new narratives of Black women's lives, health and futures. Using a series of case studies, Bailey details how Black women are using practices she labels digital alchemy to create new spaces, ideas and counter publics that empower Black women. Misogynoir Transformed is an important Black queer feminist text that implores us to think differently and expansively about Black women, resistance and power in the 21st century."--Cathy J. Cohen, author of Democracy Remixed: Black Youth and the Future of American Politics

About the Author

Moya Bailey is Associate Professor in the School of Communication at Northwestern University. She is the digital alchemist for the Octavia E. Butler Legacy Network and the Board President of Allied Media Projects, a Detroit-based movement media organization that supports an ever-growing network of activists and organizers.