A Critical Discourse Analysis of an Australian Incarcerated Trans Woman's Letters of Complaint and Self‐Advocacy. (21st June 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Halliwell, Sherree D.; du Plessis, Carol; Hickey, Andrew; Gildersleeve, Jessica; Mullens, Amy B.; Sanders, Tait; Clark, Kirsty A.; Hughto, Jaclyn M. W.; Debattista, Joseph; Phillips, Tania M.; Daken, Kirstie; Brömdal, Annette
• Is Part Of: Ethos. Volume 50:Number 2(2022)
• Page Start: 208
• Page End: 232
• Publication Date: 2022-06-21
• Subjects: Ethnopsychology -- Periodicals; Personality and culture -- Periodicals; 155.805
• DOI: 10.1111/etho.12343
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0091-2131

Abstract

Abstract: This case study provides a critical discourse analysis of 121 letters of complaint and self‐advocacy authored by Natasha Keating, a trans woman incarcerated in two Australian male correctional facilities from 2000 to 2007. During her incarceration, Natasha experienced victimization, misgendering, microaggression, and institutional discrimination. Despite this, Natasha embodied and "fought" against the injustices she experienced, whilst seeking to speak for other trans incarcerated persons also silenced and treated with indifference, contributing to changes in the carceral system. This original case study analyzes the discursive strategies Natasha employed to construct and reclaim an affirming self‐identity through a deliberate campaign to effect social change and policy concessions within a system designed to curtail self‐determination. Through her empathic and impassioned letter‐writing approach, leveraging a military metaphor, this novel analysis showcases the significant implications her activism/agentism and determination had in naming and seeking to dismantle the systems of oppression trans incarcerated women experience.