Trolls and gendered power relations

Life without social media seems like a thing of the past for most of us. In the sea of events taking place on our online public platforms, the powerful issues of social activism, and sharing of personal opinions draw my attention and interest. Several scholars have expressed deep cynicism towards the #based gender and sexuality movements like #MeToo, #YesAllWomen, #WhyLoiter, and other protests like Kiss of Love, Pink Chaddi campaign, Slut Walk, Pads Against Sexism, etc that used social media as a visibilising tool to mobilize masses. Scholars are critical of these issues because of their limited reach and popularity only amongst the educated, urban, upper class and upper caste population. Along with criticisms, there are questions pertaining to the ephemeral nature of these moments of activism, credibility of the sources of information, and dilemmas related to the efficacy of such moments, often articulated as movements by its organisers.

Having kept the cynical lens on, I believe that social media offers a sense of security and anonymity to some participants who wish to actively engage with the medium of online activism to express their narratives of victimhood, abuse, harassment, gender-based discrimination and violence. Sharing traumatic narratives of victimhood requires courage and strength, which social media seems to offer to those who choose to take refuge in it to escape other forms of expression, or physical confrontation, that come with legal, social, and moral obstacles. So, which spaces are safe for victims to talk and engage without having to worry about abuse or victim-shaming?

Technology cannot substitute patriarchal values, sexist norms, beliefs, and gender-based violence that our society is plagued with. Unfortunately, social media, too, is replete with instances of victim shaming and cyber-bullying: From blocking pages, profiles and photographs that offend ambiguous ‘community standards’, to unleashing verbal abuse, body-shaming statements, rape threats and death threats majorly on women and queers. For instance, newspapers had reported how the official page of Kiss of Love protest and the profiles of its administrators were blocked by Facebook, citing violations of community standards and presence of offensive content reported by its opposing groups. This makes me question the definitions of ‘community standards’ and what comes to be articulated as ‘offensive content’ by Facebook’s team. Women students like Gurmehar Kaur of Delhi University, Swati Singh, a JNUSU Councillor and Dyuti Sudipta, a former student of TISS, Mumbai, to quote a few, had to endure online rape and death threats for their critiques on the ruling powers and their ideologies.

While politics, opinions and ideologies can always be discussed and debated upon, sexually coloured remarks, character assassination, death and rape threats that humiliate and instil fear amongst the individuals targeted can never be considered an acceptable code of conduct in any of its covert and overt forms. 

The author is a PhD scholar at the Centre for Political Studies, JNU. Views are personal.