"TERFs are a Thing. And I F*cking Hate Them": Developing Solidarity Through Emotion and Ideology

In this paper, I investigate gender marginalization and the desire for belonging from similar (non-binary) and divergent (misgendered male versus female) experiences. The study occurs within an immersive virtual reality experience designed to deepen understanding of gender and sexuality-based marginalization. My analysis extends Sara Ahmed's queer phenomenological concept of orientations, bringing it into conversation with learning sciences theories of ideological stance-taking and emotional configurations. I highlight moments of emotional-ideological sense-making where learners reflexively negotiate between themselves and marginalized people and engage in reorientations that support new kinds of solidarity for participants. An analysis of the interaction between the narrator's story, Clare, and the researcher reveals how differences in experiences of marginalization, despite a shared identity, can produce divergent emotional configurations and ideological stances. Further, the analysis shows that interactions with the VR experience and the researcher supported the development of shared ideological stances and emotional-ideological reorientations toward solidarity.