Vol. 1 No. Vol. 1, Issue 2 (2026) · Human rights
Discourse Practices in Facebook Commenters on LGBTQ Individuals in Nigeria between 2020 and 2025
Akinwande, Bankole Idowu; Akinwande, Kehinde Ifedayo
pp. 34 – 42
Abstract
Anchored in Fairclough's three-dimensional Critical Discourse Analysis, this qualitative study examines Facebook comments on LGBTQ persons in Nigeria between 2020 and 2025. Most comments deployed moral-religious, legal and cultural arguments — labelling, othering, rhetorical questioning, evaluative adjectives, metaphors, pronouns and sarcasm — to construct negative attitudes, while a smaller subset expressed tolerance framed around human rights and equality. The study concludes that online language is a powerful tool for negotiating power, ideology and social norms, and highlights how digital discourse can either perpetuate marginalisation or foster inclusivity.