Aging & advocacy online: Disabled fashion bloggers and the pursuit of wellness

TL;DR

This study examines how disabled fashion bloggers use online platforms to advocate for social inclusion and challenge ageism and ableism.

Contribution

The paper introduces techniques for using fashion-based content creation as a tool for disability advocacy among aging women.

Findings

Social media can reframe issues of aging and disability through fashion advocacy.

Fashion is used to raise awareness about accessibility and policy issues for older adult women.

Content creation combats ageism and ableism by promoting inclusion and visibility.

Abstract

The goal of this study is to explore techniques used to advocate for social inclusion by fashion bloggers who are aging with disabilities and chronic health conditions. Online platforms have allowed people living with disabilities to work around establishment media barriers, share their perspectives, and educate the public, however, blog-based advocacy has been known to struggle with the required task of reaching its target audience, especially an audience that is not already committed to disability-related issues, such as accessibility in clothing, housing and transportation. The online forums discussed here include video logs, or ‘vlogs’, and weblogs, or ‘blogs’, associated with topics related to female disability-focused fashion. These data were publicly available social media platforms in accordance with ethical guidelines. Key findings/results included acknowledgement of the influential power of social media to reframe issues of aging and disability; Discovery of techniques for using fashion to raise awareness of social and policy issues, particularly those associated with older adult women and; Content creation as an advocacy tool for combating ageism and ableism. Implications for further research and education include the importance of working across disciplines, such as the social sciences, rehab health professions, design fields, education and communication professions, especially those specializing in social media.