Online gathering in times of physical (im)mobility: Facebook practices of Malagasy mothers in France

Abstract

Based on a thematic content analysis of 813 in-group posts, the study presented in this article aimed to analyse first the implications of (social) immobility and lockdowns for vulnerable communities such as immigrants and mothers among them due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and then how Facebook groups helped these communities to cope with such challenges. The analysis was conducted within Le Groupe des Mamans Gasy de France – a Facebook group restricted to France-based Malagasy mothers. It revealed that the group was used as a safe space of benevolence amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, a space for self-acceptance and empowerment, and a space for Malagasy cultural and identity anchoring. These findings align with Leah Williams Veazey's ‘migrant maternal imaginaries’ and Laura Candidatu's ‘diasporic mothering’ conceptual frameworks.