Impact of unmoderated spaces on women

Misogyny is driving young women away from online spaces. New polling commissioned by Amnesty International UK, exposes the staggering levels of online misogyny that plague social media, driving young people, particularly women, away from spaces meant for connection and creativity. I've shared the full report which is worth a read Toxic Tech: How Misogyny is Shaping Gen Z’s Online Experience. It adds to the giant pile of evidence around the harm being caused by tech to our young people, especially women. An overwhelming 73% of Gen Z social media users have witnessed misogynistic content online with half encountering it on a weekly basis. The problem is only getting worse, as 70% believe misogynistic and divisive language has increased on social media. Alarmingly, 55% express concerns about seeing misogynistic content, and less than half (49%) feel that social media is a safe space. The polling also uncovers the shocking forms of online harassment faced by Gen Z women, including: ℹ️ 53% receiving inappropriate emojis (e.g., 🍆💦) on their posts and photos ℹ️ 44% receiving unsolicited explicit images ℹ️ 43% being body-shamed ℹ️ 40% subjected to unwanted sexually suggestive comments ℹ️ 32% experiencing hate speech ℹ️ 27% reporting online stalking. Among social media platforms, TikTok is seen as the worst offender. 70% of respondents reported encountering misogynistic content on TikTok, rising to 80% for women, followed by Instagram (61%), Twitter/X (37%), YouTube (31%), and Facebook (30%). Marginalised groups and ethnic minorities suffer these toxic effects the most: ℹ️ Gen Z women with disabilities are twice as likely as women without disabilities to spend more than 10 hours a day on social media. ℹ️ Three in ten women with disabilities who have experienced online misogyny, reported that they had received threats of violence online against one in five of those without disabilities. ℹ️ Gen Z women with ethnic minority backgrounds who have experienced online misogyny, are more likely to have experienced hate speech than their white counterparts. Online misogyny is having a severe impact on mental health: ℹ️ 55% of those who have experienced online misogyny have blocked users in response to abusive content. ℹ️ 44% of Gen Z women who had experienced online misogyny in the UK report negative mental health impacts from exposure to misogynistic content. ℹ️ 35% have switched their accounts to private. ℹ️ 30% have taken screenshots as evidence of abuse received ℹ️ 22% avoid posting certain types of content. ℹ️ 20% have avoided or left platforms altogether And sadly there are many more depressing stats in there. Until we bring in genuine accountability and consequence to these Tech companies, these issues will just continue- we need a systemic response. For young women to abandon online spaces because of men's behaviour, can't be something we just accept. Love & light, Sal. #WeRiseByLiftingEachOther

When women speak up about male violence, harassment and abuse, some men don't like it. Some men will try to undermine you, attack you, make unfounded accusations against you to throw you off track as you defend yourself (including that you hate men), or even publicly humiliate you. I experienced this last week when a troll decided to write a number of hyper sexualised comments about me in the chat box during a webinar on....wait for it...how men can play their part in tackling male violence against women and girls. Talk about proving why this is a big issue that needs to be dealt with, and showcasing the lengths that some men will go to to harass and abuse. Its something I've experienced on every social media platform when I've spoken up about systemic gender based inequality, male violence against women, victim blaming or my personal experiences. I've been accused of hating men, not paying enough attention to men's issue aka whataboutery, of over inflating the issue despite backing up what I write with research and stats, and more. When the abuse is sexual in nature, it's rarely about sex itself. The real aim is to wield power, to dominate..the desire to destabilise, undermine, silence and put you in your place. This is one of the reasons why a culture of sexualised or objectifying banter in an office can have a significantly negative impact on the women in the office. They will feel unsafe and unvalued, and know that their career progression is limited there as they aren't taken seriously. No wonder our Sexualisation of Women in the Workplace survey and report showed that 50% of women have considered or left a job because of being sexualised. The report download link in the comments. What happened last week failed to silence me. It has strengthened my determination to stop women being sexualised, and to do what I can to support companies with their gender balance and culture so that women can thrive and succeed. Tips for online events: - Safeguard your space. Have a moderator take charge of who joins the call, monitor what people are showing on their screens and typing in the the chat. Consider locking the webinar/meeting 5 minutes after it has started to prevent unwanted strangers joining. Adjust your settings so that people can not automatically join. - If you get a troll and you are the host, do not ignore it. Many people may have seen it and be distracted or potentially upset. Pause the conversation to acknowledge it and reassure everyone it has been dealt with, and the perpetrator removed. Daniele Fiandaca did this extremely sensitively on Monday. - Afterwards, provide people with information about where they can get support if they have been triggered. There are lots of places for free support/resources to get help around sexual or domestic violence, and mental health support. - Check in with the target of the abuse afterwards. #culturechange #genderbalance #diversity #allyship #maleallies #vawg #womenleaders

Looking ahead, 2024 will be an enormous geopolitical moment, with major elections in the USA, India, Indonesia, Ukraine, Taiwan, Mexico, and the European Parliament, among many others - a total of 65 elections over 60+ countries. Women's perspectives and experiences are essential for creating inclusive policies and addressing issues that affect them and their communities. When women are prevented from participating in political discussions due to online harassment and abuse, their voices are silenced with severe democratic consequences. A team of us at the National Democratic Institute (NDI) recently reviewed all major recommendations by civil society organizations for technology platforms around the pervasive and growing issue of online violence against women. The team compiled a list of 297-platform focused recommendations across 29 civil society organization (CSO)-generated reports and discovered that the most recurring intervention themes are Transparency (28%), Customization or Curation (25%), and Policy (8%). Examples include measuring the prevalence of gendered abuse and sharing data through corporate transparency reports, building account security systems that enable survivors of abuse, who are hacked and locked out, to recover their accounts, and clearly articulating policies that prohibit content that harasses or abuses someone on the basis of gender identity. A series of consultations with representatives from tech platforms showed compelling reasons for investing in safer spaces for women are reducing exposure to legal and regulatory risks, diversifying the user base and increasing user engagement, and differentiating from competitors. Read more in our newly published op-ed in Tech Policy Press and a summary of our research on NDI’s website. Additional links are in the comments below. It has been such a pleasure partnering with the National Democratic Institute (NDI) team - Kaleigh Schwalbe, Rachelle Faust, Daniel Arnaudo, Calvin Johnson, and Moira Whelan - on this work! https://lnkd.in/grYtDErw #OVAWP #OVAW #TFGBV #EndGenderBasedViolence #WomenInPolitics

This report assesses the state of research on TFGBV as well as recent global legislative, regulatory, and policy progress made on this issue. Through a case study that explores the data around the online harassment and abuse of Australian eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant, the report documents the real-life effects of TFGBV for women in public life. TFGBV is not an intractable problem, but one that must be mainstreamed to be mitigated, centering women’s experiences in broader policy debates. TFGBV must no longer be the responsibility solely of women’s advocacy groups. Technology companies, governments, civic tech organizations, law enforcement, employers, schools, and others must mainstream their work to combat TFGBV to reflect its mainstreamed effects on society. To this end, we recommend a number of practical solutions to the specific and pressing issues that women and girls face online today. Addressing the urgent changes described here will not only make women and girls safer and ensure their voices are heard, but also improve the safety and free expression for everyone who uses the internet, building more robust, representative democracies. #gender #GBV #TFGBV #genderequality