JULY 2020 ISSUE NO. 384 The Rising Fourth Wave: Feminist Activism on Digital Platforms in India SHRUTI JAIN ABSTRACT Feminist movements have historically lacked inclusivity, often growing within a limited Western upper-class psyche, based on their own challenges and needs. The digital revolution has paved the way for a new iteration of feminism. The digital space can bolster feminist activist movements by encouraging inclusion and improving accessibility in organising collective action. It also helps weave local stories with global narratives to highlight common structural inequalities. At the same time, however, the digital space can also become a breeding ground for sexism and misogyny. This brief attempts to analyse how digitisation can affect women’s movements, especially in emerging economies like India. It does so by viewing contemporary cyberfeminism through postcolonial and postmodern feminist theories. The brief also highlights the strengths and deficits of digital activism. Attribution: Shruti Jain, “The Rising Fourth Wave: Feminist Activism and Digital Platforms in India,”ORF Issue Brief No. 384, July 2020, Observer Research Foundation. Observer Research Foundation (ORF) is a public policy think tank that aims to influence the formulation of policies for building a strong and prosperous India. ORF pursues these goals by providing informed analyses and in-depth research, and organising events that serve as platforms for stimulating and productive discussions. ISBN: 978-93-90159-47-5 © 2020 Observer Research Foundation. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied, archived, retained or transmitted through print, speech or electronic media without prior written approval from ORF. The Rising Fourth Wave: Feminist Activism on Digital Platforms in India INTRODUCTION polygamy, early marriage and permanent widowhood.4 Further, the Brahmo Samaj Feminism consists of social, economic and gave impetus to mass education of girls and political movements and theories that are women. The movement for education and concerned with gender inequalities and social reform was largely led by upper-caste gaining equal rights for women. In the West, Bengali Women.5 The reformist movement, the evolution of the feminist struggle is often as a result, led to various social gains such as referred to as ‘waves’ of change, reflecting the legalisation of widow remarriage in 1856 peaks and troughs of the movement. The and the abolition of sati.6 The later part of first wave of feminism began in the late the struggle remained preoccupied with the 19th and early 20th century in the West, issues on property and inheritance, limiting with the primary goal of securing voting the composition of the movement to upper- rights.1 The second wave emerged in the caste and elite class women.7 1960s amid a rising self-consciousness for minority groups, and against the backdrop After independence, India began to look of civil rights and anti-war sentiments. The inward to resolve social issues and create a movement largely focused on empowering systematic development plan for women. minority groups over issues like reproductive This second wave of feminism became rights and sexuality.2 The third wave of broader as the intersectionality of caste, feminism began in the early 1990s, surging class and culture were recognised by the from the new postcolonial and neoliberal state. The movement entered the private world order. The third wave deconstructed sphere to claim equal rights pertaining to the idea of “universal womanhood,” with the marriage, divorce, succession, justice for focus moving from communal objectives to dowry and sexual violence, and economic individual rights.2 opportunities.8 An exemplification of this can be found with the passing of Hindu This brief borrows the wave analogy code bills in 1950s, which provided equal to establish the chronology of Indian rights to women through laws on divorce, feminist politics. The foundation of Indian marriage, adoption and inheritance.9 With feminism—the first wave—was laid by the the improvement in literacy levels and free reform and anti-colonial movements of the movement, Indian women were beginning 19th century. The aims of the movement to determine their place in society and centred around including women in public develop identity-consciousness. The key life with better political rights, access to difference between the first and second education and employment in the context of wave was that the former was espoused by the colonial state.3 Various social reformers men on behalf of women and did not seem took up specific issues to improve the status to challenge the hegemony of the Indian of women. Reformers like Raja Ram Mohan patriarchal social structure, instead focusing Roy and Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, for on specific cultural issues that conflicted instance, argued against the ideas of sati, with the idea of Western liberalisation. The 2 ORF ISSUE BRIEF No. 384 JULY 2020 The Rising Fourth Wave: Feminist Activism on Digital Platforms in India latter was largely led by women and women’s THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY organisations. The lines between women’s social, economic and political rights became The merging of technology with the physical blurred in this period. The Chipko movement world has revolutionised the global economic, in 1973, for instance, saw women protest social and political landscape. In theory, for their rights against environmental and technology—as embodied by the digital economical calamities.10 This movement is revolution—provides an opportunity to key in Indian feminism because not only was policymakers to create a more inclusive future. it a demand for constitutional rights, it also Tools like blogging and social media have led to stood against the patriarchal social structures the democratisation of the feminist movement at a grassroots level. by providing accessibility, encouraging diversity, and inspiring leadership in a In 1980, the Five-Year Plan decided movement that has historically been lacking to focus on the health, employment and these elements. Online or cyberfeminists education of women, marking the beginning make use of blogging and social media as of the third wave of Indian feminism.11 a measure of political mobilisation and Women-led non-government organisations community building.13 Social media allows proliferated in a bid to provide support to for the swift dissemination of knowledge and other women. The movement also took information across borders, and thus enables up the rights of Dalit and marginalised transnational feminist networks. Using women.12 The developmental programmes digital tools, feminists have appropriated the and women’s groups largely directed their internet culture with the use of humour and effort to raise the economic and social status other creative satirical formats as a mode of of women. Principally, women’s groups communication.14 sought the empowerment of women to integrate them into the mainstream. In 2014, two US-based feminists created the #FeministsAreUgly hashtag on Twitter With the effects of economic liberalisation to satirise the notion that feminists are and the advent of modern technology, by unattractive, and to allow women of colour the 2000s, women in India witnessed a to speak about cultural privilege and the cultural shift that stressed on rights such as dominant norms of beauty. This challenged women’s freedom, choice and independence. the prevailing body-shaming practices Although the term ‘fourth-wave feminism’ online, as well as the perceptions of what is originated in the West, it emerged in India considered ‘beautiful’ or ‘attractive’.15 The almost synchronously due to the widespread discourse around sexual harassment has use of social media. also gained momentum around the world, ORF ISSUE BRIEF No. 384 JULY 2020 3 The Rising Fourth Wave: Feminist Activism on Digital Platforms in India and has the potential to expose the latent in social and political issues on social media. toxic culture of sexualised power in people’s About 45 percent are between the ages of 18- everyday encounters. For instance, the ‘Me 29 years.19 Young cyberfeminists also make Too’ movement against sexual harassment, use of the internet and pop culture references led by American activist Tarana Burke, to connect with their contemporaries. gained worldwide popularity through Twitter The youth are thus made to feel a part of in 2017.16 Several bloggers have called for something larger, by not only consuming “micro-rebellions”, spreading feminism in this content but also creating it.20 the free pathways of cyberspace. The ‘When Women Refuse’ blog, for instance, was At the same time, digital feminist activity started after several women were killed in can also be exclusionist because dominant California, US, for rejecting the advances cultures and languages have a significant role of men, and has since been used to report in selecting those who can be heard, included women’s experiences with sexual violence.17 and seen in the movement. Disparity in In countries like Saudi Arabia, these micro- internet access within geographical locations rebellions engage with issues beyond and socio-economic class structure is often a sexuality and body, such as those against barrier in reaching out to the masses.21 discriminatory state regulations.18 The digital space has also become a hotbed Historically, feminism has been viewed for online harassment, bullying and sexual within a restricted Western lens. ‘Third exploitation. It not only facilitates prevailing world women’ are often seen as a ‘powerless’ forms of misogyny but also gives rise to new victimised group in comparison to liberated ones that are intricately connected with the Western feminists, creating an impediment algorithmic politics of certain platforms, the to an inclusive, transnational feminist cultural bias that permeates while producing movement. However, as more women of these technologies, and the communities different nationalities, races, classes and that use them.22 cultures gain digital access, the feminist discourse expands to include the voices of DEMOCRATISING FEMINIST those who have previously been excluded.