February 27, 2015

Addressing Anti-Feminist Violence Online

Sharon Irish News anti-violence, Digital Media and Learning, harassment, safe space, trolls, Trust Challenge 2 Comments

January 2015

FemTechNet publicly denounces the systematic and pernicious harassment of women, feminists of all genders, and transgender people for their participation in digital life. During the last twelve months, people who challenge the lack of racial and gender diversity in gaming and other computing practices have been subjected to organized campaigns intended to disrupt lives and silence voices.

FemTechNet is committed to creating the accessible, open, accountable, transformative and transforming educational institutions of our dreams.

These dreams are imperiled by doxxing, appropriation of work, data and technology breaches, and threats of violence and sexual assault.

Anti-feminist and anti-justice campaigns demonstrate, in the worst ways possible, that the boundaries of website, device screen, and machine are permeable with “real life.” Accountability, collaboration, collectivity, and care are feminist technologies. We activate our network to join the chorus of voices that reject online and offline violence and silencing of women and feminists.

Here are two proposals that address the problem:

“Addressing Anti-feminist Violence Online” A Digital Media and Learning “Trust Challenge” proposal

“Hey Haters: Community Based Participatory Research on Gendered Online Harassment” A Digital Media and Learning “Trust Challenge” proposal

Signatories to date: Commission of the Status of Women (CSW) within the Association of Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC); The Fembot Collective; The Feminist Wire; Hashtag Feminism; International Communication Association, Feminist Scholarship Division (ICA FSD); McGannon Communication Research Center; Wikid GRRLs

Teen Library Accessibility

The February 2015 newsletter of the Center for Children’s Books (CCB) at the University of Illinois carries an article that begins this way: “Last semester, students from myriad institutions and disciplines collaborated in a distributed open collaborative course (DOCC) created by FemTechNet, a network of scholars, students, and artists interested in feminist science-technology studies. At the University of Illinois, the DOCC entitled “Collaborations in Feminism and Technology” included students from Art and Design, Library and Information Science, and more, led by instructor Sharon Irish. In conjunction with this class, CCB graduate assistant Michelle Biwer explored the issue of accessibility for teen library patrons, ultimately compiling a LibGuide designed for teen librarians or library students interested in learning more about accessibility.”

The CCB conducted an interview with Biwer and Irish. Michelle Biwer’s LibGuide can be found here. There are great resources in the guide, even if you don’t work with teens or in a library!