Openly-Trans YouTubers and Gender-Affirming Undergarments: Production, Distribution, and Consumption via DIY Tutorials on YouTube

Abstract

Queer and trans individuals have fashioned their bodies in various ways throughout time; however, their undergarment needs are not always available in the marketplace. We asked: how have trans people produced and distributed DIY gender-affirming undergarments worn on the lower portion of the body via DIY YouTube video tutorials amid the lack of commercial objects available to fashion their sense of self? To answer our question, we analyzed 24 YouTube videos on DIY gender-affirming undergarments created by openly-trans YouTubers using a grounded theory, constant-comparative approach. Although the fashion industry, and society at large, often neglects trans individuals’ needs—many trans people have exhibited resilience and resistance, in this instance by making and disseminating their own gender-affirming undergarments and related knowledge. Arguably, these trans YouTubers engaged in acts of personal and community liberation by sharing product ideas and product knowledge to assist themselves and others in obtaining accessible gender-affirming care.