How Snapchat has Become safe Heaven for Queer People

“Privacy lurks around every corner of Snap, the fact Google can’t sync my contents alone, I feel safe and free to share whatever I love. I totally be myself, like, do you get?” Morgan says

11-years ago, Snapchat was created by American developers: Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy and Reggie Brown. Former students of Standford University.

The photo, video and social app is known for it’s significant emphasis on users interacting with virtual stickers and augmented reality objects. The app has become popular among the younger generations, particularly those below the age of 16, leading to many privacy concerns for parents. On average, more than four billion Snaps are sent each day as a few categories of social media users have found more privacy using the app, it is one of those applications hardly Google synchronized.

Hence, users are not overly public via internet on a larger scale compared to other media outlets like TikTok, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Snaps doesn’t go beyond her spaces unless the content has been fed on by other media outlets, just as Oxlade’s sextape was publicly leaked from the app, and even at that, users have full control of every content dished out from who saves them or not and so forth.

Also, the app seems to have become a more interesting collection amongst other fleeting social media channels and it is growing to become safe heaven for queer people as the day goes by. According to Morgan, a 23-year old Snapchat social media Influencer @tzmorgy20, a queer and a student from the University of Port Harcourt, “I joined Snap in 2017, approximately 4-years ago and I have found connecting with the world easier, and for me Snap is more real with all the energy I get from people, mostly my kind of people per se,” She says. “On a bunch of other media outlets I find expressing myself a bit gruesome, with judgy folks on my WhatsApp and Instagram, and Facebook also but on Snap, instead it has introduced me to a new set who I’ve found genuinely appreciate me for who I am.” Morgan told me passionately.

In Nigeria, Snapchat is significantly the social media platform where you can find your favorite celebrity with a different username and a more famed stage name. Wizkid is a huge example. Through Snapchat, you can connect these celebrities on a more personal pedestal and voyage with them to understand their process as a cult.

Mayorkun, the popular Nigerian hit making popstar is one of those suaving this direction. The Mayor of Lagos as he is fondly called, has learned to welcome a range of his fans showing them almost everything that goes on inside his live and more. Same way Ebenezer Daniel tells me how he’s found the app as his safe Heaven almost like Morgan who the app is currently a conduit to express herself freely at her own pace. According to the queer male being more practical stated that he met another queer folk along his area in D/Line Port Harcourt. “so, one rainy Saturday I was in my home, using the App when I connected with Sam,” Ebenezer tells me, it was due to the near by location advantage of the app which has purpoted him in finding and connecting with genuine folk around his terrain in Port Harcourt.

He also connected with another Michigan queer folk from America more recently earlier this month with the app. According to him, Snapchat is a different zone entirely. He almost shared the same experiences with Morgan who has found the app simpler to easily be herself and explore her life however she likes. “Snapchat is my safe heaven,” Ebenezer Daniel told me proudly while he was saving his new snap clips at the bar we discussed facing opposite each other.

“Privacy lurks around every corner of Snap, the fact Google can’t sync my contents alone, I feel safe and free to share whatever I love. I totally be myself, like, do you get?” Morgan says, she speaks her truth and you see it trotting through her eye contact. She added, “what you allow is what the public sees down to what they could save on to their mobile devices and how the non-judgemental folks I’ve connected with in the past 4-years being a user of the App makes everything more seriously interesting for me to stock with the ware.” Morgan finally stated.

So, last week, Mariam Silver a 22-year old queer person finds the app secretive and also safe to express regardless. She tells me on WhatsApp and explains that presently, she intends creating a community for other queer folks and so let the rest be history, of course they’ve found their safe Heaven.