These Dolls are spreading trans joy whether you like it or not: ‘Dollidarity is the word of the day’
PinkNews speaks to ‘doll’ meme influencers who are taking the internet by storm. (Getty/Instagram/Canva/Czech Hunter Schafer/DollDeranged)
PinkNews speaks to 'doll' meme influencers who are taking the internet by storm. (Getty/Instagram/Canva/Czech Hunter Schafer/DollDeranged)
A lot of grassroots queer culture in the UK can be traced back to East London, whether its the region’s nightlife, its history as a hotspot for LGBTQ+ safe-spaces, or its legacy as a queer cultural centre-point.
While many could, and have, argued the once rainbow-clad section of the UK’s capital has had its wings clipped through years of gentrification, there are still corners of Dalston, Hackney, Bethnal Green, and surrounding areas that continue to light the fire of queer liberation.
It’s these places – the venues and clubs littered across East London – that helped to define the veritable, self-certified trans Doll who would eventually become the semi-anonymous influencer, Czech Hunter Schafer (CHS).
Describing herself to PinkNews as the “meme Queen of East London,” CHS, who holds no relation to the trans actress of the same name, is one of the most popular Instagram accounts in a global community of “Doll” trans meme posters.
Newcomers to her style of irreverent memes are often either left confused or in fits of laughter – whichever reaction you have is, almost by design, usually dependent on your understanding of colloquial trans culture.
With over 50,300 followers, CHS’s feed is littered with purposefully unhinged memes featuring captions like “dollidarity is the word of the day”, “you can’t build a house without bricks,” or “try as they might, you can’t drown fish.” They may sound nonsensical to some, but we can assure you they’re relevant to trans people.
Doll Culture: the ‘life-blood’ of East London’s queer clubbing scene
Fittingly started as part a joke, CHS says she created her account after her friends mistook her for another trans meme poster. After correcting them, she thought: “well, f**k it … I may as well do it too.”
“It started as sort of a joke, but it’s become almost like documenting a culture, which is good because it’s putting my so far useless Master’s degree in culture to use,” she jokes.
Doll Culture, which forms the basis of CHS’ posts, is an East London offshoot of the 1980s ballroom scene. Comprising mainly of trans women or “Dolls,” it emphasises confident femininity through absurdist phrases that act as a kind of code language to promote trans rights.
“I think people started latching onto it because Doll Culture is like the life-blood of much of [queer] culture around the East London clubbing scene. Like, if you’re running a queer club and the Dolls aren’t there then it’s not a club night worth going to.”
CHS says that clubs such as Dalston Superstore are hotspots for Doll Culture. Fellow influencers often frequent a lot of the same clubs, including her best friend, Bestie, who also co-hosts their podcast, Tea Slur.
The sub-culture grew, in part, because of the lack of representation trans artists often deal with. Rather than rely on outside forces who may not have their best interests at heart, the Dolls chose to platform each other.
A community of ‘Doll’ meme accounts has quickly grown into a trans cultural phenomenon, thanks in part to users such as DalstonSuperStoned, Tranbie, 1.in.emillion.x, and many more.
“Dolls in general are artists, we’re like visual artists,” she says. “We’re musicians, mainly DJs, but we don’t get platformed ever … When it comes to having a platform, unless we build one ourselves as Dolls, we’re not given the opportunity.
“It feels like a hole in representation [of the trans community]. We’re really funny people, we’re really interesting, we’re chaotic.”
Doll Culture and the memes across the pond
While Doll Culture may not be getting the recognition it deserves through mainstream sources, its influence has been felt across the globe. The trans rights slogan “Protect the Dolls” has skyrocketed in popularity after several celebrities, including Pedro Pascal, wore a T-shirt with the phrase earlier this year.
Doll Culture certainly isn’t restricted to the UK. US-based meme-posting influencer, Nicole, known online as “DollDeranged” has been lighting up the internet with her own brand of memes and lighthearted troll posts.
Her madcap accolades include posting a fake transition timeline falsely attributing a photo of YouTuber Charles “MoistCr1TiKaL” White Jr as a pre-transition picture of herself, a deadpan video about the importance of fan art depicting Sonic the Hedgehog kissing his rival, Shadow the Hedgehog, and a 20-minute long video essay on why LGBTQ+ people enjoy the horror series Five Nights at Freddy’s.
With over 51,900 followers and counting, Nicole says the planning that goes into an average post is still minimal, but that she feels it’s part of the charm.
“I used to be like, okay, I need to post daily, but it’s usually when I just have a bunch of images saved on my phone. It’s whenever I want to get some dopamine.
“I mean, it’s just me having fun. They say Instagram and social media is addictive for scrolling. It’s also addictive for posting.”
The unique element to Nicole’s brand of post is that, rather than making memes wholly about being trans, she uses her experiences as a trans woman to poke fun at other, often nerdy, communities.
“I’m more of an internet nerd, like that’s always been my special interest with things like Five Nights at Freddy’s or The Legend of Zelda and Sonic the Hedgehog. I’ve always just loved those kinds of [nerdy] memes.
“I think a lot of people resonate with that because it’s just a trans person having fun on the internet. 99.9 per cent of the time, you’re not talking about what’s going on in politics. I feel I speak to trans politics just by existing.”
‘I wouldn’t call what I do activism, I just don’t want my sisters to get murdered’
While it’s not her focus, Nicole is no stranger to acknowledging the global regression of trans rights. Her memes highlighting trans issues typically take more of an absurdist format, partly based on the assumption that her audience is already clued in on the topic she’s covering.
“I don’t feel I need to go out of my way to post about trans rights,” she says. “Like if there’s something specific, like the [Tennessee] Supreme Court ruling, I’ll do something on that, but I don’t feel like it’s my strategy. I guess it’s that trans joy thing where people respond more if I’m just having fun. I’ve noticed too that if I ever post something overly serious it just quickly gets found by conservatives.”
Across the pond, CHS’ approach to highlighting serious issues the community, while similarly unhinged, is far more direct.
While she uses her platform to promote marches, protests, and campaigns, CHS says she doesn’t see herself as a “capital A activist.”
“I guess there’s an element of activism that goes into being a marginalised person [on the internet], but I wouldn’t call what I do activism. I just don’t want my sisters to get murdered.
“That might get me labelled as an activist from people who see anything to do with being trans as activism, but if we’ve gotten to the point where a girl who makes memes about girl d**k can be considered a political radical, then maybe that’s more telling about where we are than what I do.”
