Earlier in the semester, a lecture we watched on the subject of youtube spoke about how the internet has the amazing ability to bring people together. When the lecture was filmed, the internet was not in the same place it is today. It had untapped potential that people didn’t quite understand how to use yet, but one thing was certain: websites like youtube were bringing people together in communities.
Youtube is referred to as “the youtube community” to describe people who meet via this platform and become friends, but the internet has blown the idea of communication far wider than that. People are now able to meet others with similar experiences— ideally, people who never would have been in their lives without this connection. As the internet has become several series of niche groups, different people have been able to utilize this in order to feel less alone. One example of this, mentioned in class in the podcast presentation, is Marlo Mack and her daughter, M.
When Marlo Mack first realized that her daughter was trans, one of the main reasons she felt fear was because she did not have an awareness of any community which could educate her and embrace her child. That’s why she made the choice to begin her podcast, How To Be A Girl. The podcast chronicles the story of Marlo raising her daughter, M., and trying to navigate this experience in a way that would make M. safe and happy. Marlo uses a fake name for both herself and her daughter so that other people can hear about their experiences in a way that does not expose her daughter to discomfort at school.
In an interview with Salon magazine, Marlo discusses the moment that she finally accepted the fact that her child was a girl. “‘The day she finally convinced me was when I asked her, “Do you still want to be a girl?” and she said, “No, Mama, I still am a girl.’” This moment occurred around the time M. was four years old, and Marlo likes to tell the story to show people how intrinsic M.’s gender is within her. She tells the story, and the other stories of her life with M., because she wants parents to realize that this child knew who she should be even at four-years-olds, and now that she is seven, that hasn’t changed. Marlo hopes that this information will come as a relief to other parents that they are not alone, or perhaps will bring people to the realization that their child’s gender is no more a choice than their own.
Through this podcast, Marlo and M. have been able to connect to people with similar experiences to their own. They have spoken out about creating a community of kind, understanding, and similar people so that acceptance is a regular aspect of M.’s life. Both in real life and on the internet, M. is surrounded by positivity, and M.’s story fills other people’s lives with positivity. In doing so, Marlo is attempting to normalize this experience, both for M. and for other people. In one story, she describes M. meeting Laverne Cox, a popular actress who is trans. Marlo states that M. was genuinely more excited to meet Laverne because she was famous than she was to meet a fellow trans person. This is just one example of the community Marlo has created for her daughter.
Even a decade ago, a podcast like this would not have existed. And, with that, the acceptance that this podcast created, both for M. and for other parents as well, would not have existed either. Podcasts like How To Be A Girl have created a dialogue that would not exist without them. They have become useful in both capturing the public discourse of the time period, and also facilitating it. How To Be A Girl gives this particular niche of people an opportunity to find others who are similar, while also allowing them to possibly enlighten both themselves and those who do not belong in this niche on the subject of what it is like to have a child who is trans or to be a trans child. This raw significance is captured perfectly in a quote from Marlo. She says of her daughter: “I hope that hearing her voice will help change some hearts and minds on this issue. She’s a powerful advocate for herself and others like her.”
This is just one area of the world that the internet is bettering, and as it continues to grow, there will be more stories just like this one that lend themselves to the concept of this machine being one of the biggest advocates for humanity.
Sources: http://www.howtobeagirlpodcast.com/about/, http://www.salon.com/2015/08/30/how_this_mom_is_raising_her_7_year_old_transgender_girl_with_a_little_help_from_laverne_cox_janet_mock_and_jazz_jennings/