The #IStandWithMaya hashtag originated as a movement of support for Maya Forstater, a researcher whose legal battle over gender-critical views and employment rights became a global flashpoint for discussions on free speech and identity. The phrase gained massive traction on Twitter in December 2019 after author J.K. Rowling posted it in a high-profile show of solidarity. Since then, the template has been used both earnestly by supporters to advocate for Forstater's legal case and satirically by others to comment on the surrounding cultural debate. It serves as a visual shorthand for taking a side in one of the most polarizing social discussions of the modern internet era.