Towards a critical trans politics of code/space
Topics: Digital Geographies
, Feminist Geographies
, Political Geography
Keywords: trans geography; digital geography; political economy
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Tuesday
Session Start / End Time: 3/1/2022 03:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 3/1/2022 05:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 62
Authors:
Theodore Davenport, University of Washington
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Abstract
As a discipline, geography has engaged very little with trans digital spaces or trans political economy. I argue that a trans lens enriches gendered understandings of code/space, or the co-constitution of everyday life and software (Kitchin and Dodge 2011). In particular, I engage with Kitchin and Dodge’s concept of the “capta shadow,” which refers to the collection of intentionally captured data across all platforms about a specific person or object. Because of how lucrative and useful capta are for corporate and government institutions (by, for example, increasing advertising revenues or furthering citizen surveillance measures), capta shadows play an enormous role in digital political economy.
Such surveillance systems rely on stable identifiers in order to assemble a capta shadow, but because identity destabilization is often key to transitioning (through, for example, changing one’s name or appearance), the mere existence of trans people confounds surveillance systems. This has significant ramifications for trans experiences of political economy, as being forcibly outed as trans through credit reports, background checks, or even social media platforms affects access to employment, housing, financial means, and many other resources.
Rather than arguing for trans inclusion in surveillance systems, I propose reading trans digital spaces through Dean Spade’s critical trans politics, which demands an intersectional political ethic that moves beyond civil rights as the end goal of trans liberation movements (2015). Taking into account the ubiquity of code/spaces, a critical trans politics needs to seriously consider the tangled relationships between trans subjectivities, digital spaces, and political economy.
Towards a critical trans politics of code/space
Category
Virtual Paper Abstract
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