Constructing Digital Collectivity through Symbolic Participation: The Brave Pink and Hero Green Movement Following Indonesia’s 2025 Labor Protests

Abstract

The rise of visual symbols on social media has transformed how individuals express solidarity and participate in digitally mediated movements. This study examines how the Brave Pink and Hero Green symbols that emerged following Indonesia’s 2025 labor protests contributed to the construction of digital collectivity. Using a qualitative case study and netnographic approach, the study draws on semi-structured interviews with active social media users, a digital visual creator, a media scholar, and a journalist-activist, complemented by observations of symbolic participation on Instagram and X. The findings indicate that the symbols functioned as accessible entry points to digital activism through profile-picture changes, reposts, and other forms of visual circulation. Repeated exposure and reproduction enabled users to recognize shared concerns and develop a sense of affiliation without requiring formal organizational membership. The study further shows that visual symbols operated as a common communicative language through which individualized participation became collectively visible. However, symbolic participation did not necessarily develop into sustained activism, as engagement remained influenced by media momentum and public attention. This study contributes to digital activism scholarship by conceptualizing visual symbolic participation as a mechanism through which digital collectivity can emerge through shared recognition, affiliation, and networked participation without formal organizational structures.