A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

Shameless hags and tolerance whores: Feminist resistance and the affective circuits of online hate




AuthorsJenny Sundén, Susanna Paasonen

PublisherTaylor & Francis

Publication year2018

JournalFeminist Media Studies

Journal acronymFMS

Volume18

Issue4

First page 643

Last page656

Number of pages14

ISSN1468-0777

eISSN1471-5902

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2018.1447427

Web address https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14680777.2018.1447427

Self-archived copy’s web addresshttps://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/37336535


Abstract

This article explores shamelessness as a feminist tactic of resistance to online misogyny, hate and shaming within a Nordic context. In our Swedish examples, this involves affective reclaiming of the term “hagga” (hag), which has come to embody shameless femininity and feminist solidarity, as well as the Facebook event “Skamlös utsläckning” (shameless extinction), which extends the solidarity or the hag to a collective of non-men. Our Finnish examples revolve around appropriating derisive terms used of women defending multiculturalism and countering the current rise of nationalist anti-immigration policy and activism across Web platforms, such as “kukkahattutäti” (aunt with a flower hat) and “suvakkihuora” (“overtly tolerant whore”). Drawing on Facebook posts, blogs and discussion forums, the article conceptualizes the affective dynamics and intersectional nature of online hate against women and other others. More specifically, we examine the dynamics of shaming and the possibilities of shamelessness as a feminist tactic of resistance. Since online humor often targets women, racial others and queers, the models of resistance that this article uncovers add a new stitch to its memetic logics. We propose that a networked politics of reclaiming is taking shape, one using collective imagination and wit to refuel feminist communities.


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