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How can we be feminist on the Internet ?
Feminism is ‘an organized effort to give women the same economic, social, and political rights as men’. Throughout history, it is often explained by waves or movements carried by a generation. Since the 2000s, the Internet has become a major tool used to circulate feminist ideas. The methods may rely on modern technologies, but the values they promote are the same ones people have defended throughout history.
A lecturer in Information and Communication Sciences at Sorbonne University Paris Nord studied feminism in this digital era and explains many traditional practices, such as petitions or fundraising, still exist but now also take place online. Some magazines like ‘Madmoizelle’ also incorporate the principles of the written press by publishing it online.
However, these practices can also be completely new like blogs or groups on social networks. These online spaces for discussion allow collecting testimonies from victims of discrimination and sexist acts, to inform and raise awareness among people on this subject.
Today, social networks are also widely used to report sexual assaults, domestic violence and misogynist behavior due to hashtags such as #MeToo, which has allowed women in both professional and personal environments to speak out freely. These actions therefore make it possible to highlight and hear voices that are not always listened to in society and are often absent from the media due to the minimization of their suffering.
Thanks to the presence of feminism on social media, increasingly younger people have access to information on these subjects, which allows them to better inform themselves and be able to take part in these social justice movements. The information that circulates can help support victims and educate people about concepts such as consent or harassment, which ultimately encourages greater solidarity and protection for those affected.
Thanks to the defense of feminism on the internet, we can witness a concrete demonstration of intersectionality. According to Amnesty international, this term ‘describes how different forms of discrimination are not isolated phenomena, but combine and strengthen when they concern the same person.‘ The defense of feminism is therefore linked to other causes, such as the fight against racism, since different forms of discrimination intersect and accumulate. For example Kimberlé Crenshaw, the scholar who developed this concept, explains that in court cases involving discrimination against Black Women at work in the United States, the judges separately assess the effects of discrimination which led to ‘invisibilization’ of Black women’s experiences and poor legal protection of Black women. This concept of intersectionality therefore makes it possible to fight more effectively against situations of violence and to ensure equal access to rights for everyone’ by developing a more inclusive feminism.
Faced with the rise of masculinist and sexist movements on social networks, staying vigilant and defending gender equality, while fighting against disinformation, helps us to stay aware and work to prevent discrimination.
Edited by Ruby Fry
MeToo hashtag digital text on RGB screen, Wolfmann, 2017 // CC BY-SA 4.0
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