Commemorations of Cancel Communities in the Context of Digitalization

The article is a theoretical study of the transformation peculiarities of commemorations within modern cancel communities in the context of the influence of digitalization on the ways of recording, storing, reproducing and transmitting collective memory. Based on the constructivism of Pierre Bourdieu and the analysis of the contemporary social movements such as Black Lives Matter and Rhodes Must Fall, the article highlights the main features of modern cancel communities as mnemonic communities: an exaggerated focus on protest as an ideological basis for deconstructing the past, the construction of continuity with historically marginalized groups, the key role of digital technologies, the practical nature of commemorations and the expression of counter-memory, as well as the transnational nature of memory culture practices. Findings from the third wave memory studies underscores the significance of the digital turn in the field of memory research. This is evident in the emergence of new types of mnemonic communities, where the decisive role is played not by common patterns of identity, but by connective networks and hashtag interactions. The use of key concepts of digital memory studies – connective turn, globital memory, digital archive, gamification – as a theoretical framework allows us to identify and analyze the main trends in the transformation of commemorative practices in cancel communities in the context of digitalization. These trends include the amplification of commemorative practices in cancel communities and their unique temporality, the growing importance of the individual participation and mnemonic activism, the internationalization of commemorative practices, the rising influence of latent and passive forms of participation, and the active development of digital archives that serve as an alternative memory institution, focusing on protest forms of representation of the past. 

Keywords: cancel culture, cancel communities, digital memory studies, connective turn, globital memory, digital archive, gamification