Covid-19, Harassment and Social Media: A Study of Gender-Based Violence Facilitated by Technology During the Pandemic
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26740/jsm.v4n2.p319-347Keywords:
sexual violence, online harassment, gender-based violence, social media, COVID-19Abstract
The transition of all individual activities in the home gives rise to two forms of violence
against women: domestic violence and online sexual violence. Specifically, this article
argues that independent quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the
orientation of community sexual violence to technology-facilitated sexual abuse. Social
media networks have become a trajectory of changes in sexual violence that was initially
physical into online sexual violence. This research uses a qualitative method with a case
study approach to understanding online sexual violence. The data presented here refer to
the experiences of four survivors with different backgrounds and stories. The results show
that technology has facilitated digital abuse, which impacts a series of dangerous
behaviors experienced in social media. As part of social media users, women are very
vulnerable to experiencing online sexual violence from personal relationships,
boyfriends, friends, and relatives. Space and time in the real world folded in such a way
as to provide opportunities for the reality of virtual networks to become a realm of
gender-based violence. At the same time, social media's neutrality then becomes a means
of supporting gender inequality.
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