Silencing women in the digital age

Abstract

In this paper I explore some of the ways in which developments in new digital technologies reproduce, and often amplify, the patriarchal structures, practices and culture of contemporary life and, in doing so, operate to silence women through exclusion and through violence. I consider how international human rights law – most notably the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) – can be harnessed to counter both forms of silencing in that each is rooted in gender-based discrimination. The digital gender divide and the rise in online violence against women evidences the failure on the part of States Parties to fully commit to their legal obligations pursuant to CEDAW. Ensuring equality of access to, and use of, digital technologies cannot be anything other than the preconditions to ensuring that women can benefit from, contribute to, and influence the development of digital technologies in a meaningful manner. The digital realm may be a privatised public space that warrants a reconceptualisation of the scope and content of human rights law but the fact that much of the digital infrastructure is owned and controlled by private actors does not absolve States of their human rights responsibilities.

Understanding Identity and Platform Cultures

“…It is clear that these platforms are not designed for all, and that by speaking and being visible on these platforms there is a stochastic potential of violence for different communities, unpredictable in how it manifests yet statically probable to occur (Saresma, Karkulehto, & Varis, 2021). This culture can prevent voices from being present in these platforms and spaces (Arimatsu, 2019), in turn solidifying the normality of often white cis-male voices as the centre of digital discourse. In the same ways in which sociological theorists often ask us to turn our attention to discourses as spaces of tension, power, and knowledge, so too can we consider architectures of violence online which normalise certain voices, rhetorics, and ideas, while silencing others.…”

Untitled

“…The result is 'the silencing of international law', which 'is made possible by the constitution of the digital space as a privatised public space'. 73 Relatedly, Adams and Ní Loideáin explore provisions and findings within international women's rights law to elucidate the fostering of gender stereotypes in virtual personal assistants. Among the applicable legal instruments, the authors show the relevance of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UN Guiding Principles) in providing guidance to States and private actors on their human rights responsibilities.…”