Flipping the Lens: Using Instagram for Photovoice and Videovoice With LGBTQ+ Migrants in São Paulo

Source: PubMed Central Open Access, NCBI / U.S. National Library of Medicine

This article examines Instagram as a tool for data collection with LGBTQ+ refugees and migrants in São Paulo, Brazil. While photovoice and videovoice are widely used, integrating Instagram enables forms of data collection not usually possible with these methods. Twenty-one LGBTQ+ migrants created original visual content. Instagram allowed participants creative control compared with conventional photovoice, choosing how to represent themselves through filters, captions, music, and privacy settings, while negotiating constraints such as digital literacy and platform visibility. Drawing on workshops, content, and interviews, the article analyzes how Instagram facilitated storytelling, community building, and agency, while highlighting the limits of digital participation.