Abstract
Hashtag activism on Instagram has become a significant platform for Black women in South Africa to express their identity and empowerment. This significance lies in Instagram’s accessibility, visual nature, and wide reach, which collectively foster an environment where Black women can confront stereotypes, reinforce cultural identity, and establish supportive digital communities.
This research explores #BlackGirlMagic as a cultural tool that provides resources for resilience, recognition, and aspiration, while also highlighting the pressures of performance and the risk of exclusion faced by participants. The research explores the influence that hashtag movements on Instagram have on the identity and empowerment of Black women in South Africa. This qualitative study included eleven detailed interviews with women aged 21-35 as part of the data collection, which were analysed thematically.
The findings were grouped into four themes: affirming identity, turning digital empowerment into real-life impact, managing pressures of representation, and addressing inclusivity and exclusion. The results suggest that #BlackGirlMagic boosts pride in Blackness and challenges Eurocentric beauty norms, but it could also restrict authenticity through aesthetic standards and uneven visibility across social divides like class, location, and ability. The Social Identity Theory underpinning this study revealed that group identification strengthens belonging and collective effort, while Intersectionality explained why experiences of affirmation and exclusion differ.
By placing #BlackGirlMagic within the context of South Africa’s racial history and digital inequalities, the study adds to worldwide research on hashtag feminism, demonstrating that these repertoires can be both empowering and limiting.