Cyberfeminism and Political Activism

Introduction:
The term Cyberfeminism is used to explain the philosophies of a current feminist
network whose pursuits are our online world, the Internet and generation. The time
period become coined withinside the early Nineteen Nineties to explain the paintings
of feminists inquisitive about theorizing, critiquing, and exploiting the Internet, our
online world and new-media technology in general. Cyberfeminism is taken into
consideration a predecessor to networked feminism. Cyberfeminism additionally has
a dating to the sector of Feminist Science and Technology Studies The dominant
cyberfeminist angle takes a utopian view of our online world and the Internet as a
method of freedom from social constructs along with gender and intercourse
difference. Cyberfeminism perspectives generation as an automobile for the
dissolution of intercourse and gender in addition to a method to hyperlink the frame
with machines. Cyberfeminism refers back to the utility of the feminism ideology to
or accomplished in our online world. An authoritative definition of cyberfeminism is
tough to discover in written works due to the fact early cyberfeminists intentionally
avoided an inflexible elucidation. Cyberfeminism is likewise worried with the
connection among present structures of discrimination and computing technology,
which includes race and racialization There is likewise cyberfeminist paintings
exploring the connection of recent technology to gender and sexuality. Scholars
along with Jessie Daniels indicates that "Cyberfeminism is neither an unmarried idea
nor a feminist motion with an absolutely articulated political agenda. Rather,
"cyberfeminism" refers to quite a number theories, debates, and practices
approximately the connection among gender and virtual culture..." In addition,
"inside and amongst cyberfeminism there are some of theoretical and political
stances with regards to Internet generation and gender in addition to an important
ambivalence approximately a unified feminist political project." Jessie Daniels,
Rethinking Cyberfeminism: Race, Gender, and Embodiment Whereas Yvonne Volkart
from the antique boy’s community states that: “Cyberfeminism is a fable. A fable is a
tale of unidentifiable origin, or of various origins. A fable is primarily based totally on
one relevant tale that's retold again and again in exclusive variations. A fable denies
one records in addition to one fact, and implies a look for fact withinside the spaces,
withinside the variations among the exclusive stories. Speaking approximately
Cyberfeminism as a fable, isn't supposed to mystify it, it surely shows that
Cyberfeminism most effective exists in plural”. Yvonne Volkart, The Truth
approximately Cyberfeminism There isn't but a definition to finish the which means
of Cyberfeminism. Cyberfeminism isn't simply the situation matter, however, is the
method taken to observe situation matter. For example: Cyberfeminism may be a
critique at equality in our online world, project the gender stereotype withinside our
online world, observe the gender dating in our online world, observe the
collaboration among human and generation, observe the connection among ladies
and generation and extra. For examples: the innovation of net has a big effect on
ladies’ lives (Like how the innovation of phone sold ladies safety from crime and now
not being remoted from geographical constraint), the concept of virtual lifestyles has
been added to all customers of the net; however, is that this new generation
releasing or oppressing ladies? In this sense, we will consider this innovation another
time loose lady from time and area constraints which permit them to end up lively
customers at the web. On the alternative hand, this innovation can probably oppress
ladies through encouraging cybersex, pornography, or prostitution which in the long
run makes them extra vulnerable. Therefore, Cyberfeminism is the method to
observe those matters. (Rosser, 2006)
Theoretical framework:
The internet has these days end up a critical device for the feminist motion to
renovate itself and to counter the paternalistic rhetoric of “security” this is used to
silence ladies and slender the areas wherein they are able to operate.
The Women’s Action Forum (WAF) – a feminist conscious-elevating institution
recognised for permitting Pakistani girls to combat for his or her rights – changed
into fashioned for the duration of 1980s. Its formation changed into a reaction to the
repressive rules brought below General Zia-ul-Haq’s Islamisation agenda, which
positioned immoderate attention on girls because the guardians of kingdom, own
circle of relatives and religious “honour”. Dress codes and conservative social
practices – lots of which retain to this day – have been strictly enforced to limitation
girls’ freedoms and confine them to the chaadar and chaar dewari. Until lately, the
feminist motion used conventional strategies – which includes demonstrations,
correspondence campaigns and petitions – to oppose the draconian measures
installed through the kingdom withinside the 1980s. Eyewitness debts of the protests
in 1983 don't forget the illegitimate pressure of the authorities used towards the lady
protesters on the mall in Lahore. Methods which include teargas and lathi (baton)
expenses have been used towards the two hundred to 250 girls, similar to the
response of kingdom forces closer to valid protests that we see nowadays in Pakistan
and beyond. Despite its efforts, till lately WAF changed into in large part unknown to
the overall public in Pakistan. However, through taking possession of online areas the
institution has won growing recognition. Social media presence and e-mail threads
assist the participants of the discussion board difficulty strongly worded statements
concerning applicable feminist and social troubles withinside the USA. In addition,
WAF’s growing online presence8 has helped it publicise its paintings as a foyer and
strain institution on rules concerning violence towards girls withinside the USA.
Moreover, more youthful humans are becoming a member of WAF, which
additionally owes its achievement to the web presence of the institution. WAF is
taken into consideration through many to be a image of feminist resistance
throughout Pakistan, and stays united towards repressive Islamic and kingdom legal
guidelines that retain to limitation the areas wherein girls can operate. The
discussion board represents the thriving feminist motion withinside the USA that has
succeeded in setting girls’ troubles at the countrywide agenda. WAF’s online
presence is a trademark of ways the feminist motion is utilizing the possibilities that
virtual areas provide. For many agencies and collectives in Pakistan, the net has
grown to be a critical strategic device to organise protests and to mobilise humans
rapidly. Activists are coordinating themselves online extra and extra, as an example
via Facebook, WhatsApp, Signal and Twitter. Such structures and messaging apps
permit instant, loose verbal exchange and profiles that assist in dissemination of
information. The developing presence of feminist collectives online proves that
online areas have grown to be critical, and now and again challenging, web sites of
political resistance themselves. They lend guide to groups and reasons that now no
longer handiest get hold of little traction in offline areas however which might be
actively being restricted. Such online areas have the capability to supply and have fun
more than a few politics and identities, and for people to grow to be extra seen to
shun the marginality they revel in offline. Girls at Dhabas is one in every of Pakistan’s
maximum famous feminist collectives that owes its reputation usually to online
areas. The collective specializes in the reclamation of public areas through girls and
non-binary people, what commenced as a photograph published of one of the
participants sipping tea at a dhaba (roadside café) quickly have become a motion
that started out to outline the proper of girls and non-binary people to revel in
Pakistan’s public areas. This is finished via numerous innovative public area
interventions, which includes cricket matches, motorcycle rallies, mural painting, and
meetups in parks and dhabas, all of which the collective promotes via its online
presence. Feminists from throughout Pakistan are more and more sharing their
studies anonymously via the collective’s online pages to shed mild at the patriarchy
Pakistani girls revel in of their everyday lives. The collective lately released bilingual
podcasts that spotlight troubles of feminist problem, that allows you to make an
extensive effect in an extra innovative way. It is likewise the usage of its online area
to attain out to parallel moves which includes ‘Why Loiter?’ in India that allows you
to toughen its feminist ethos and lift new questions concerning motion constructing
for nearby audiences. This is prime for the collective to carry feminists primarily
based totally in city contexts collectively via sharing examples from throughout South
Asia, to sensitise them and cause them to a lively a part of the feminist advocacy
motion withinside the USA. Another collective that owes its club to online areas is
the Feminist Collective (TFC), which changed into created as a reaction to sexism
withinside the left. The collective emphasises girls’ poor studies of operating with
guys withinside the left and envisions the advent of an effective socialist feminist
motion withinside the USA. The participants of the collective automatically talk
approaches for feminists and queer activists to organise throughout Pakistan with
the assist of virtual media. TFC is a critical device to permit feminists to collaborate
each time a difficulty of problem arises, especially that of the shrinking of leftist areas
for girls. Additionally, the institution additionally presents a guide gadget and a
secure area for feminist activists who can't specific themselves freely in public given
Pakistan’s restrictive political environment.
Despite the clean advantages that using online area brings, feminists with a web
presence have come to be an increasing number of liable to online assaults and
worse – disappearance or death. Such assaults constitute every other manner
wherein civic – albeit online – area for feminists is being restricted. For instance, the
activities main as much as the homicide of Qandeel Baloch, a social media movie star
and provocateur acknowledged for her formidable videos, are indicative of the
backlash ladies revel in as end result of participating in online areas on their very
own terms. Such stigmatisation additionally effects in ladies and non-binary people
falling beneath multiplied country manipulate and scrutiny, each on and offline. The
tracking and policing that used to take location in offline areas is now taking place
online, with the authorities shaping the narrative of who the general public need to
rally in opposition to and contact anti-country. This rhetoric regularly effects in
feminists being stalked online, receiving threatening messages or having their
cellular smartphone numbers culled from their profiles. These feminists are then re-
victimised after they project their online abusers, which may be visible through the
backlash in opposition to them withinside the online areas in which they voice their
grievances. It has to additionally be referred to that whilst online areas have made a
plethora of voices to be had via feminist observation and activism, this regularly
takes location on the price of larger, greater intersectional problems, that's a project
we have to triumph over. The motion is regularly accused of being elitist and
exclusionary with many online projects being predominantly in English and catering
to city classes, mainly the decision to protests online. These calls most effective
attain a positive phase of society and bring about the equal few activists displaying as
much as protest. Both WAF and Girls at Dhabas, for instance, were criticised
continuously over those problems and are regularly labelled as ‘Western’ projects
through the country as a try to discredit and silence them. Not most effective is that
this an average rallying cry through powers that are seeking for to limitation civil
society through discrediting it as representing overseas values, however for the
feminist motion one of this label is similar to being accused of propagating “white
feminism”. This effects withinside the motion being visible as neither culturally
applicable nor on hand for ladies from operating magnificence or rural backgrounds.
To triumph over those criticisms, the motion is now looking to make sure that
greater content material in Urdu is created to enhance online outreach, especially
with the assist of podcasts and bilingual observe circles initiated through Girls at
Dhabas and the Awami Workers Party to sensitise Pakistani audiences and face up to
being discredited through the country and their very own constituency. Class
illustration also can be finished via online collaborations with labour and peasant
moves throughout Pakistan, mainly the ones led through ladies. The social media
“boycott” marketing campaign concentrated on Khaadi, a nearby garb franchise, is a
superb instance to examine from on this regard. The boycott, initiated through the
National Trade Union Federation, took place due to the company’s exploitative
labour practices and which underscored the recurring structural violence that
manufacturing unit workers — inclusive of lady ones — revel in on the palms of the
nearby style industry. Feminists may want to provoke comparable campaigns which
will assist the motion benefit legitimacy and counter the discourse that it's far elitist
and representing western values. (Rehman, 2017)
Methodology:
The research is qualitative in nature using secondary data collection

Findings:

Limitations:
While doing this research the basic hindrances faced were that:
 Time was not sufficient
 The data found in the context of Pakistan was also limited
 The researches found are inaccessible or paid
 The researches done was not done specifically on the topic that is discussed in
the research and were very vast in nature

References

Ensemble, F. W. (1998). Notes on the Political Condition of Cyberfeminism. CAA. Retrieved from
https://www.jstor.org/stable/778008
Stephan, R. (2013). Cyberfeminism and its Political Implications for Women in the Arab World.

Rehman, Z. (2017). ONLINE FEMINIST RESISTANCE.