How trans people are using Pinterest for inspiration
Images source: https://broadlygenderphotos.vice.com/
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Pinterest has always been a positive place where people can explore the dreams and ideas that will fuel their future selves. So it’s no surprise that since last year, searches for “transgender transition” have increased 3919%¹. Pinners are also finding inspiring quotes, artwork, style tips, wellness ideas and representation in the growing number of trans, nonbinary and genderqueer celebrities online.
This Transgender Awareness Week, we’re sharing some insights into how people are using Pinterest to dig into trans topics and celebrate gender transitions—for themselves and their loved ones. Additionally, we’re publicly sharing our internal guide for supporting employees who choose to share their gender transition with their teams. Our hope is it can serve as a resource for other companies building inclusive cultures with their trans, nonbinary and genderqueer colleagues. Read more here.
Finding what transitioning means to you
Image source: https://broadlygenderphotos.vice.com/
People have been searching for trans topics on Pinterest for years. Top searches include “transgender quotes inspiration,” “transgender pride,” “transgender facts,” and “transgender art.”
But in 2019, “transgender transition” became the number one search related to transgender topics. There have been millions of searches for topics like changing your name and pronouns, hormone therapy, gender affirming surgeries, style, and how to support a loved one who is transitioning.
One of our own employees shared how Pinterest provided inspiration during their transition: “Among other things, I've used Pinterest during my physical transition to explore and visualize my style. How do I see myself and how do I want others to see me? How much do I want to blend in or stand out? Timeless or trendy? Rugged, preppy, minimalistic, edgy or athletic? Sure, I had asked these questions before transitioning and had exclusively worn clothes made for guys for going on ten years, but I started to find that I wanted to ask myself those questions more often because the answers were beyond anything I thought possible before transitioning. Pinterest has been a great source of not just inspiration for what I want to wear, but of self-actualization. It's helped me see what's possible for me during a time of immense growth.”
A sharp increase in searches
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Searches on “transgender transition” started to rise dramatically in May of 2018, which might have correlated with other transgender issues and moments in the news at that time. Since this uplift in May ‘18, searches on “transgender transition” have increased 3919%¹.
Other trending searches and top Pins
Image source: https://broadlygenderphotos.vice.com/
Other trending searches
Since this increase, there have also been 4X as many searches for those transitioning from male to female than female to male—although we see from searches that Pinterest is popular with anyone who is transitioning. Some other trending searches this year are²:
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Mtf (male to female) before and after transgender +65%: Pinners are exploring the experiences of othertrans people during their transition
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Transgender comic +144%: Comic strips can put a helpful spin on challenging issues and weird situations faced by people exploring gender identity
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Transgender captions +621%: These short stories help transitioners know they are not alone
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LGBTQ coming out ideas +310%: Pinners are finding creative ways to come out to their loved ones, like throwing parties
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Nonbinary fashion plus size +196%: Pinners who don’t identify as male or female are finding fashion ideas that fit in more ways than one
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Genderqueer wallpaper (cell background) +79%: A special phone background is a special message genderqueer Pinners can send themselves every day
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Here’s a short list of the trans and non-binary icons trending on Pinterest:
Top Pins
People are saving educational and inspiring Pins from the trans community like:
Resources on Pinterest
Image source: https://broadlygenderphotos.vice.com/
New to searching for transgender topics on Pinterest? These profiles can be a great place to start:
We’re honored to share these insights and will work to continue building a positive and inspiring platform for all.
Methodology:
¹Searches for “transgender transition” increased 3919% from May 2018 to August 2019.
²Percent increases for trends were calculated using normalized searches from August ‘18 to August ‘19.