#ShoutYourAbortion and being heard: the affordances of hashtags for feminist counterpublics in hostile digital atmospheres

This article critically explores counterpublic responses to the overturning of Roe v Wade and the intense contestation on Twitter (now X) between pro-abortion and anti-abortion advocates. Focusing on networked acts of deliberation, this study shows how #ShoutYourAbortion and #RoevWade facilitated the formation of defensive publics and Counterpublics. Hashtag feminism can enable affected groups to share experiences that are often marginalised by traditional media outlets, while witnessing and affirming similar experiences shared by others within their community. In this article, I examine the extent to which the collectivising hashtag #ShoutYourAbortion facilitates deliberation and listening in the context of polarising abortion debates post-Dobbs. The results indicate that while hashtags have the potential to bridge opposing ideological groups, there are significant limitations to their effectiveness in fostering listening and the conditions necessary for democratic uptake. Nevertheless, hashtags perform an important democratic function: creating enclaves that can amplify and support marginalised voices.