I wrote this as a position piece in support of the fourth-wave feminist tendency toward what is known as "hashtag activism." Shared here because I wrote it and am proud of it, but also because this is relevant to riot grrrls both then and now.
Edited and reposted 1/2/2021 because the formatting went all screwy. The content is still the same. Pinky promise.
03/09/2020
The feminism of the 1970s introduced us to the concept of “the personal is political. What does this mean for feminists in 2020? Like its predecessors, fourth wave feminism stresses personal freedom; it is “shaped less by a shared struggle against oppression than by a collective embrace of individual freedoms.” (Sheinin 2016). Feminism’s fourth wave is recognized as the period beginning in approximately 2008. It is motivated and influenced by social media. The prevalence of the Internet presented easy accessibility to feminist media at a global level. It is a continuation of the issues that were present and presented in third wave feminism. The most recent incarnation of feminism incorporated technology into activism. Feminists of the Fourth Wave movement are described as “tech-savvy and gender-sophisticated.” (Baumgardner 2011). They have been exposed to technology from an early age and are adept in its uses. Fourth wave feminism and “hashtag feminism” changed the way that we as a society view and discuss social issues.
“Hashtag activism” is defined by Yang as “discursive protest on social media, united through a hashtagged word, phrase, or sentence.” (Yang 2016). Hashtags act as a conversation prompt that encourages participation without necessarily defining it. “These hashtags contain verbs expressing a strong sense of action and force. The actions are petitioning, demanding, appealing, and protesting. They express refusals, objections, and imperatives to take immediate action.” (Yang 2016). The expression of outrage invites participation. Hashtag activism brings attentions to everyday issues and occurrences - such as sexual violence against women. Hashtags are easily searchable and lend well to otherwise marginalized segments of the community. “Social media enables active participation as opposed to passive consumption.” (Clark 2016). The self-published zines of third wave feminism gave way to blogs, online media, and Twitter. Hashtag feminism makes issue resolution, engagement, and involvement more accessible than previous incarnations.
Specific hashtags change as issues arise, are addressed, and fade or become less prevalent.“#YesAllWomen is a hash tag we forgot about #Ferguson isn’t popular anymore #WhyIStayed is may not pop up but these things are important!!!!!” (Baconacid 2014) While trending terms will change with the times, the conversations sparked are forever archived. FeministaJones has parlayed hashtag feminism in the black community into a book, published in 2019. “Hashtags like #TheEmptyChair and #YouOKSis and #WhyIStayed create community and solidarity.” (FeministaJones 2015). Though the hashtags themselves have fallen out of the public eye, the issues still exist. She goes on to indicate that the hashtag #YouOKSis became something of a call-and-response, a sentiment echoed year later by Madisyn39814542: “#youOKsis - This hashtag was used in a variety of ways. Mostly though, it discussed Black women and the harassment they go through or asking how they’re doing. They use the call and response technique.” Searching for #YouOKSis only shows a few occurrences during the past 7 days; however, the hashtag itself creates a conversation for women - especially in public spaces. It has been expanded to include not only personal safety but also mental health/wellness issues. Retweets range from hundreds to thousands per individual Twitter conversation. Tweets are shared through other forms of social media, often appearing in Facebook stories and Instagram photos. Stories of female solidarity under the hashtag #YouOKSis have become something of a viral phenomenon, with women sharing and responding to each other’s stories of women effectively saving strangers from street harassment. #WhyIStayed, and the related hashtags #WhyILeft and #WhyIDidntReport, serves as catharsis for the survivors and motivation for those in similar situations.
There are concerns regarding the effect of social media on the overall impact of feminism. One concern is that the impersonal nature of social media and hashtag feminism is going to turn the movement into a commodity, a way to sell ad space. A search through any social network site will bring up advertisements specifically targeted to the user based on search and purchase history - feminist ideals are not immune. The United Nations recently used some of the most popular hashtags in feminism to renew their stance to the people of the world. Hashtags have become a rallying cry to invite action and membership from others with shared beliefs. There is the valid concern that this will result in an overall sense of complacency. Additionally, feminists of the fourth wave are somewhat separated from the political aspects of the movement. Fourth wave feminism is “shaped less by a shared struggle against oppression than by a collective embrace of individual freedoms” (Sheinin 2016). This modern feminism stresses personal freedom but at what expense? Poll data from 2016: 47% of the public, 60% of women (poll of 1,610 American adults); however, feminism is often referred to as “the women’s movement” to avoid the association with the less-than-desirable images of its past.
Hashtag feminism has changed the way that we talk about social issues. It encourages conversations both on- and offline. Hashtags have raised awareness about issues that would have been considered uncomfortable or undesirable. It also gives agency to the feminists of the fourth wave. “... Fourth Wave exists because it says that it exists… the Fourth Wave matters, because I remember how sure I was that my generation mattered.” (Baumgardner 2011). While activism does not take the same form as it did for our mothers and grandmothers, through the use of hashtag feminism, it continues to take place.
References
Baconacid (2014, September 30). #YesAllWomen is a hash tag we forgot about #Ferguson isn’t popular anymore #WhyIStayed is may not pop up but these things are important!!!!! [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/baconacid/status/516962630855319552
Baumgardner, J. (2011). F’em: Goo goo, Gaga and some thoughts on balls. Berkeley, CA: Seal Press. Retrieved from https://www.feminist.com/resources/artspeech/genwom/baumgardner2011.html
Bennett, J. (2014, September 10). Behold the power of #hashtag feminism. Time. Retrieved from https://time.com/3319081/whyistayed-hashtag-feminism-activism/
Blay, Z. (2016, March 21). 21 Hashtags that Changed the Way We Talk About Feminism. Huffington Post. Retrieved from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/21-hashtags-that-changed-the-way-we-talk-about-feminism_n_56ec0978e4b084c6722000d1
Clark, R. (2016, February 22). Hope in a hashtag: the discursive activism of #WhyIStayed. Feminist Media Studies. doi: 10.1080/14680777.2016.1138235.
FeministaJones (2014, August 8). Ultimately, if you’ve paid attention, #YouOKSis is a call for bystander intervention that moves beyond sharing experiences to ending them [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/FeministaJones/status/497883852439027712
FeministaJones (2015, July 27). Hashtags like #TheEmptyChair and #YouOKSis and #WhyIStayed create community and solidarity. We just have to be mindful of boundaries [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/FeministaJones/status/625772998511960064
Henderson, C. (2017, August 14). How the feminist movement has changed in the social media age. VT.co. Retrieved from https://vt.co/lifestyle/social-media-changed-feminist-movement/
Madisyn39814542. (2020, February 28). #youOKsis - This hashtag was used in a variety of ways. Mostly though, it discussed Black women and the harassment they go through or asking how they’re doing. They use the call and response technique. [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/Madisyn39814542/status/1233518330062999554
NSVRC (National Sexual Violence Resource Center). (2020, March 6). #YesAllWomen, #WhyIStayed, #MeToo - each of these hashtags highlights women’s experiences with interpersonal and institutionally enabled violence. [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/NSVRC/status/1235988526900092928
PiaGlenn (2018, August 3). I was looking at the young lady, didn’t even have to ask #YouOKSis [because] she clearly wasn’t. It seemed like she had been putting up with his street harassment for a few blocks and had finally had enough. [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/PiaGlenn/status/1025530566110789637
Sheinin, D. et. al. (2016, January 27). Betty Friedan to Beyoncé: Today’s generation embraces feminism on its own terms. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/feminism/betty-friedan-to-beyonce-todays-generation-embraces-feminism-on-its-own-terms/2016/01/27/ab480e74-8e19-11e5-ae1f-af46b7df8483_story.html
UN_Women. (2020, January 10). #MeToo #TimesUp #NiUnaMenos #HeForShe #OrangeTheWorld #BringBackOurGirls #EverydaySexism #WomenShould #YesAllWomen #WhyIStayed #IWillGoOut #GenerationEquality Social media has become a new frontier to join the fight for equality and justice. [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/UN_Women/status/1215507317342593024
Wonderbitch82. (2020, February 7). I’m walking to the train a few minutes ago and a woman walked right up to me and gave me a tight hug and whispered quickly, “please act like you know me 3 guys are following me for a while” I played along then walked her 3 blocks home. What an experience for the both of us. [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/Wonderbitch82/status/1225983607648456705.
Yang, G. (2016). Narrative agency in hashtag activism: the case of #BlackLivesMatter. Media and Communication, 4(4), 13+. Retrieved from https://link-gale-com.centralpenn.idm.oclc.org/apps/doc/A463634621/OVIC?u=centpenn_itc1&sid=OVIC&xid=17c4e2b0
Xeni (2018, February 8). Punched me in the face while I was driving when I told him I’d finally found guts to leave. Told him he couldn’t do that anymore so he did it again, car was moving. I get it sweet sisters I’m safe to talk to, anytime. #WhyIStayed f that why I got the f out. And you can too honey [Tweet]. Retrieved from URL https://twitter.com/xeni/status/961811332981911562
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