Reviving feminism through social media: from the classroom to online and offline public spaces

ABSTRACT

Feminist research has urged the inquiry for strategies to engage young women in feminist debates and give them the tools to create effective techniques to fight against discriminatory practices in their own lives. In response to this call, we turn our attention to social media as one of the appropriate tools for sharing their stories, fighting against street harassment, and promoting the discussion on feminist ideals. Using a thematic analysis, we examine how a group of young female university students communicated, both in public spaces and on Facebook, new social representations after being exposed to feminist content, and after creating communication strategies to fight street harassment. Our thematic analysis revealed it is possible to engage young people with feminist principles when we reinforce the theoretical content with personal experiences, and when we use social media as a tool to express feelings and ideas.

KEYWORDS:

• Street harassment
• social media
• thematic analysis
• gender violence

Disclosure statements

No potential conflict of interests was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Pamela Flores holds a PhD in Cultural Studies from Universidad de Sevilla, Spain. She is an Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Masters of Communication at Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla, Colombia. Her research interests focus on the relations between public spaces and citizenship, urban cultures, and the coexistence of differences in contemporary world.

Nancy Regina Gómez has a PhD in Communication Studies from Ohio University. She is a Professor, and Director of PBX, Research Group in Communication, Culture, and Social change at Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla, Colombia. Her research interests focus on the recognition of diversity, the evolution of feminism and feminist theory, and narratives of peace.

Alana Farrah Roa is a doctoral student at Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla, Colombia. Her research interests have to do with the communication of equality in public and private spaces, and with the recognition of the rights of Women and LBGT Communities.

Risa Whitson is an Associate Professor and Curriculum Chair at the Geography Department and at the Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Department of Ohio University. Her interests are situated at the intersection of geographies of development, social geography, and feminist geography.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Open Society Foundations under Grant # OR2015-25050.