The radical feminists of the 1970s, by contrast, are defined in terms of an emphasis on. As seen in the table above, sixtyeight percent of the articles mendes examined frame slutwalk as a beneficial movement. For the past six years she has lived in leicester with her partner ben, their boys brayden 3 and adam 2, and a very energetic and loving lab named layla. Anyone interested in the use of social media in activism, the representation of feminism in media and popular culture, and how feminist activism is shaped by national context will find slutwalk to be essential reading.
For example, feminists avidly debated whether the right to wear slutty clothing simply played to the male gaze and promoted a postfeminist sensibility that empowerment is best achieved through the overt display of ones sexuality. Because there has been an erasure of western news coverage of feminist activism and protest since the second wave mendes 2012, with feminism frequently being labelled dead or redundant see gill 2007. It reveals strategies and practices used to adapt the movement to suit local cultures and contexts and explores how social media organized. Article accepted version refereed original citation. In the wake of the global slutwalk movement, important questions have emerged about reclaiming the word slut, whether this form of protest effectively challenges rape cultures, whether it promotes sexual agency while deploring slutshaming, and whether it reflects the. In doing so, it presents a robust and original analysis of modern feminist activism from various angles, and is a mustread for anyone interested in modern feminist protest and. In slutwalk, kaitlynn mendes conducts a feminist media analysis of the slutwalk movement that began in toronto in 2011 and quickly spread globally, thanks in large part to the use of social media to drum up interest and spread information.
Review slutwalk is an important contribution to feminist social media activism. Kaitlynn mendes, a leader researcher of feminism, from her book slutwalk. With a strong media presence in 2011, slutwalk s following two years of coverage registered a drastic reduction, revealing a thematic fatigue and the end of its spectaclenovelty effect, which did not, however, prevent the movements global. Mendes 2011a, slutwalk s global reach and its ability to generate international headlines provides an opportunity to. Find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. Focusing on slutwalk melbourne, the chapter considers how immaterial, digital, and. Australia, canada, india, new zealand, singapore, south africa, the uk and the us. Feminism, activism and media feels especially pertinent and useful in light of some of the more recent celebrity sexual assault cases seen in canada and the united states and the subsequent discussions of what a goodbad victim looks and acts like. Feminism, activism and media kindle edition by mendes, k download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Specifically, participants protest against explaining or excusing rape by referring to any aspect of a womans appearance. Although slutwalk has succeeded in garnering positive massive mainstream media attention, which is necessary for the longevity of any. If you have access to a journal via a society or association membership, please browse to your society journal, select an article to view, and follow the instructions in this box. She was born in calgary, canada and spent time in texas and indonesia as a child.
In january 2011, toronto police constable michael sanguinetti addressed a small group of york university students on campus safety. Mendes concludes with slutwalk s legacy as a global feminist antirape movement, arguing that slutwalk provides a muchneeded grassroots response to. This book not only historicizes slutwalk, including many of its global. Raunch culture, third wave feminism and the vagina monologues reflections on the vagina monologues in respect to teaching, activism, and tensions between second and third wave feminisms slutwalk protests, undergraduate encounter groups, sexting and girls gone wild, the legacy of 1970s consciousnessraising, girl power at the barricades, the shifts from feminist tract to feminist. Trishla singh, media coordinator for the slutwalk delhi explained that for centuries words. Feminism, activism and media examines the global antirape movement slutwalk and its coverage in the feminist. She documented the experiences, routines and strategies of organizers behind the movement between 2011 and 2014. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading slutwalk. Slutwalk, feminist activism and the foreign body in singapore. Feminism, womens movements 5 premodern, patriarchal throwbacks in law and culture, investing in legal, educational and media strategies as a form of feminist civilising process as well as lobbying the state for formal equality within the public sphere. Except for one, girls from womens studies dont come to our activities. Interestingly, it was the feminist media that was much more critical of slutwalk than the mainstream media. Despite all the activism and research, however, the cultural misconception prevails.
Access to society journal content varies across our titles. Kaitlynn mendes slutwalk is a study of the global antirape movement of the same name, in eight nations which organized marches. Slutwalk explores representations of the global antirape movement of the same name, in mainstream news and feminist blogs around the world. A study in transnational feminist activism in doaj. A journal of critical studies in culture and politics, 21. It reveals strategies and practices used to adapt the movement to suit local cultures and contexts and explores how social media organized, theorized and publicized this contemporary feminist campaign. Review of the book slutwalk, feminism, activism and me dia, by k. Feminism, activism and media kaitlynn mendes kathy. In this chapter, mendes intelligently comments on slutwalk s branding, promotion, and use of social media.
The rallies began on april 3, 2011, in toronto, ontario, canada, after a toronto police officer suggested that women should avoid. Prefaced by the statement, im told im not supposed to say this, he went on to advise that women should avoid dressing like. Feminism, activism and media, dr mendes studied the global antirape movement and examined the representations of the movement in mainstream news and feminist blogs. Slutwalk, feminism and news by mendes, kaitlynn media. Information about the openaccess article the slutwalk movement. Slutwalks and the future of feminism the washington post.
Australia, canada, india, new zealand, singapore, south africa, the uk and us. Pdf slutwalk, feminism, activism and media researchgate. How does the privilege of feminist activism in social media travel into the mass media. Slutwalk is an important contribution to feminist social media activism. Kaitlyn mendes slutwalk, feminism, activism and media, published in 2015. The history of hashtag activism is still in first draft to be sure, but there is already an emergent scholarship on slutwalks that can be illuminating for understanding this mediated form of feminist activism, race, and the trouble with white feminism and there has been quite a lot of trouble with white feminism in slutwalks. Slutwalk is a transnational movement calling for an end to rape culture, including victim blaming and slut shaming of sexual assault victims. Slutwalk is a study of the global antirape movement of the same name, in eight nations which organized marches.
Feminist scholars have described digital feminist activism as a departure from conven tional modes of doing feminist politics, arguing that it represents a new moment or a turning point in feminism in a number of ways. I recommend the book for scholars interested in researching media representations of feminism and political activism mobilizing via social media platforms. It demonstrates the mainstream news unprecedented support for slutwalk, suggesting that we may be finally moving. A study on internet usage and womens political activism in the middle east and north. Slutwalk, feminist activism and the foreign body in. The goal of feminism is a social change of unequal relations between men and women. Social media and activism until recently research in the political science field and in social movement studies had little to say about the precise role of communication and communicative practices in the construction of collective identities and protest movements, their sustainability or. Feminism, activism and media, is lecturer in media and communication at the university of leicester. Slutwalk is not sexual liberation gail dines and wendy j.
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