Millions across the world have been tweeting messages and memories about growing up in different communities
What is it like to grow up Black vs. White? How about Scottish vs. English? Or maybe Mexican? Or Nigerian? This week, social media has been providing a surprisingly detailed answer.
Most popular hashtags on social media are popular in just one country or one community of users. But this week, an online conversation which began among African American on social media suddenly went global. The hashtag #Growingupblack had been trending for a few months. For most users, it was a fun chance to compare childhood experiences connected to Black identity in the United States.
"We didn't have dress shoes, we had church shoes," actress Jackee Harry tweeted. Another tweet said: "My mom's best friend was automatically my aunt."
Then something unexpected happened: Other communities began to pick up on the trend. At first, #growingupmexican became popular. Now almost every nationality has its derivatives, from #growingupfrench and #growinguprussian to other nations with relatively low presence on social media in English. Currently #growingupchinese, #growingupsamoan and #growingupangolan have all been used many times.
Some uses of the hashtag may reflect local politics, according to Mike Wendling of BBC Trending, which monitors online trends. He says that in the UK, #growingupscottish has proved particularly popular, possibly reflecting the growing popularity of Scottish nationalism since the Scottish independence referendum. Some of those tweets may prove mysterious to non-Scots.
Tweeter @Katie_Morag wrote: “#GrowingUpScottish If the light in the living room wisny called 'the big light' then you urny Scottish.”
One of the more surprising outcomes has been how similar 'growing up' experiences appear to be in many cultures, Wendling says. He noticed that one photo of a biscuit tin filled with a sewing kit has appeared under #growingupblack, #growinguparab, #growingupscottish and #growinguphispanic.
“Apparently keeping your sewing needles in a cookie tin is a cross-cultural phenomenon, which not everyone would have realized," he says.
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