Shared Signals

What is it?

“Inspector Sands to the control room, please.” “Mr Skylight to number One and Two.” Epaulettes signifying rank or role. Prison tattoos that convey membership or criminal deeds.

These are all examples of communicating information, signifying membership or directing action through shared code to others in the know. Others in your network or community.

Language is one of the five core principles of community. Language can create shared points of reference, signals and codes to connect and communicate within a community.

From oppression to empowerment, shared signals have a rich and fascinating history. They can communicate hidden languages, function as propaganda or distinguish one person’s preference from another’s. From queer plants to the yellow Star of David, they are a way of imposing or expressing beliefs, identity or preference before we have even spoken.

Marginalised communities have often found innovative ways of using shared signals for resistance and preservation. For many Black communities, hairstyles have long been a means to communicate beyond language. While they originally signified familial lineage, they were later used to depict escape routes from plantations and then again as a way of protesting against discriminatory practices linked to natural afro hair.

However, signals and language can often have multiple meanings and interpretations, and can move quickly from signifiers of unity to division. The pussyhat shifted from revolutionary to exclusionary; the pink triangle, once an oppressive Nazi identifier, was reclaimed by the LGBTQ+ community as a symbol of empowerment and solidarity; Pepe the Frog became a symbol of far-right extremism after its debut as an innocent cartoon, and in Gen Z slang the term ‘simp’, previously used by incel groups to describe men who ‘surrender their masculinity’ to women, now refers to Gen Z crushes.

Why should I care?

From ribbons, wristbands, and wearable merch, to unifying behind a single colour (red, blue, yellow, or pink to name just a few). The charity sector is no stranger to leveraging shared signals and symbols to bring together a community of people united behind a cause.

But in a space that moves so quickly, there will be times when we don’t even realise that we are communicating, or being communicated to, in code. These cultural blindspots can sometimes mean that others are inadvertently excluded or oppressed by the language we use. Or when some use virtue signalling to replace real action.

When used respectfully and with intent, shared signals can be a powerful tool for change, for inclusion. They can give a voice to the marginalised and a platform to be heard. They can create a safe medium for connection, when action or language is banned or illegal. Shared signals can build community.

Show, don't tell.

• During lockdown, the Canadian Women’s Foundation promoted a simple hand signal for women suffering violence at home to use on video calls to show others they need help
• The NHS created the LGBTQ+ NHS badge for those who identify themselves within these communities to ensure that patients feel comfortable talking about their own sexuality and feel supported by staff members
• Annette Dore created Badge for Life as a means for people to express the desire to stay safe in the pandemic, whether that’s through pointing to their role as a key worker or commemorating lost loved ones
• Bedale AFC have sported a see-through kit, for a campaign in conjunction with HECK, which raises awareness and money for prostate and testicular cancer. Called the "Let's Be Clear" campaign, the new kit swaps HECK for CHECK to encourage men to check themselves regularly and see their GP if they spot a problem
• Moodbeam is a wristband which allows employees to tell update their boss on their emotional state to help companies monitor wellbeing.

Defying the 'norm'

• SwaG Design won the Centre for Ageing Better’s competition to create positive icons which challenge stereotypes around ageing, theirs was a dancing older couple intended to replace road signs.
• Apple’s updated emojis include a pregnant man and a multi-racial handshake
• Green Woman traffic light signals introduced by TFL to celebrate International Women’s Day with a diverse range of female representations
• The accessible icon project is an ongoing work of activism aimed at changing perceptions around disability
• Despite the EU ruling which could allow workplaces to ban the hijab, defiant hijab-wearers are finding different ways to resist. Les Hijabeuses are a collective of young female footballers campaigning against this type of ban in France as well as promoting a more inclusive society.

Showing solidarity

• Athletes have adopted the Pride rainbow in support of LGBTQ+ groups including German hockey captain Nike Lorenz and England football captain Harry Kane
• The Bristol statue of Edward Colston has been replaced with a statue of a BLM protestor Jen Reid
• After winning silver in the shot put in this year’s Olympics Games in Tokyo, Raven Saunders formed an ‘X’ above her head on the podium. Saunders, who is a gay woman of colour, made the symbol to represent “the intersection of where all people who are oppressed meet”
• Skittles removed the rainbow from their packaging and “offered it up” to recolour images from historic moments in pride
• Jason Sudeikis, who plays an American coach for English football in the show Ted Lasso, wore a shirt in support of the three footballers to the premiere of its second season
• Various pins have been created in support of those who helped us through the pandemic, namely key workers and NHS staff, including the celebrity-designed People’s Medal.

What not to do!

• Anti-vaxxers appropriated the yellow Star of David as a means to borrow “the pain of others to lend credence to their own.”
• BBC faced backlash after co-opting the red ribbon usually associated with HIV/AIDs as a means to commemorate lives lost to Covid and on World AIDs Day, no less
• We’ve previously touched on rainbow washing in Good Futures. Read a bit more here about 25 corporations marking Pride who also donated over $10m to anti-LGBTQ+ politicians
• “Therapy-speak” is being co-opted and diluted by the general public, who use terms without knowledge of their “proper” meaning
• Students are calling out white people for appropriating Patois language and co-opting Black culture for cultural capital.