Gender & Social Media: Men’s Rights Activism & Meninism on Social Media

Objective
The objective of this project is to explore gendered behaviors on social media by investigating the rise of Men's Rights Activism/Meninism on social media (Twitter). Popular 'meninist' or MRA twitter accounts will be examined to understand the purpose, goals and objectives of this movement and to gauge whether these factors maintain or further contribute to the patriarchal system that exists in society. In a broader sense, does this reflect the sentiments of meninist advocates in contemporary society?

The consensus of certain topics found via online activism platform does not equate to the general consensus in society.

Brief History of the Men’s Liberation and Men’s Rights Movement
Initially the men’s movement activists aimed to attract more men towards feminism by emphasizing how the “male role was impoverished, unhealthy, and even lethal for men” (Messner, 1998, 256). However, there was a division amongst the members of the Men’s Liberation Movement; the conservatives created an anti-feminist organization that disregarded the claims of women that discussed the impacts of patriarchy and the other end of this spectrum moved towards a pro-feminist movement (Messner, 1998, 256) ''Messner, M. (1998). The limits of “The male sex role”. Gender & Society, 12(3), 255-276. doi:10.1177/0891243298012003002''

What is the problem?
Feminism is  “range of movements and ideologies that share a common goal: to define, establish, and achieve equal political, economic, cultural, personal, and social rights for women” (Hawkesworth, 2006). However, Men’s Rights Organizations have been attempting to suppress women’s rights movements in order to “preserve their power and privilege” (Guthrie, 2013). The most recent event on social media was an example of how this medium was turned into a hostile environment for women -- this single event led to the UofT administration drafting policies to ensure the safety of students enrolled in WGS and sociology classes.This medium was also used by the administration and student staff to coordinate protests, share images and revive the spirit of feminism on social media as well.

Cases for Examination
This topic was chosen for further examination for a variety of reasons. Firstly, the effect of the U of T feminist threats on social media which led to police officers being stationed outside my women and gender studies classes. Secondly, the posts themselves and the impact of a few lines of hate filled messaged on a blog leading to protests (both online and otherwise, for e.x.  U of T Feminist campaign). Secondly, the incidents surrounding the controversial men’s rights group at U of T - CAFE (Canadian Association for Equality) and its agenda. Thirdly, an interest in the resistance movement, existence of organizations like, A Voice for Men, and a hashtag and surrounding conversation on meninism.

What is the problem?

Feminism is  “range of movements and ideologies that share a common goal: to define, establish, and achieve equal political, economic, cultural, personal, and social rights for women” (Hawkesworth, 2006). However, Men’s Rights Organizations have been attempting to suppress women’s rights movements in order to “preserve their power and privilege” (Guthrie, 2013). The most recent event on social media was an example of how this medium was turned into a hostile environment for women -- this single event led to the UofT administration drafting policies to ensure the safety of students enrolled in WGS and sociology classes.This medium was also used by the administration and student staff to coordinate protests, share images and revive the spirit of feminism on social media as well.

Research Question
To what extent is social media (blogs, Twitter, MRA forums) being used as an outlet for anti-feminist sentiments? What are the repercussions of these actions? Does this reflect the sentiments of a segment of society that is resisting the feminist movement since the late 1800’s.

To further explore the issue, I will be conducting a focus group to understand the opinions of fellow students about the Meninist movement, MRA agenda and the comments on the blog. Structure of the focus group?

Reference Points
The conversation around the topic of Men’s Rights Activism can be investigated by understanding the importance of online activism (also known as Slacktivism or Clicktivism).

The article Many clicks, but little sticks explores social media activism in Indonesia also known as a “Twitter Nation”, in this study Lim (2013) states that the context of the situation determines the effect of a hashtag or promotion of a political event on social media (p.3). Online activism cannot be generalized as effective/successful or ineffective/unsuccessful, the individuals involved in the dialogue, the event, support of an offline movement are all factors that make a difference in its success (p.4). Similarly Demirhan and C ̧akir-Demirhan’s (2015) article on the Patriarchal Discourse on Social Media discusses how online communities can both promote “hegemonic discourses and traditional power relations” as well as “challenge dominant discourses” (p.308).