Fighting Gendered Online Abuse

Ashley Judd seeks to combat online hate speech, and talks about how this is possible in this empowering talk.

The talk begins with the political activist and actress stating some of the misogynistic and violent things that she has had people say to her on Twitter and Facebook -- abuse she faces each day in the digital sphere. She talks about how often women and girls face online abuse, threats, harassment and phenomenons such as "revenge porn" -- an experience that is highly gendered, global and indicative of the rampant misogyny that exists in the world. This abuse is often worse when intersectional and associated with women of different gender identities, sexual orientations, races, ethnicities and religions. After outlining the ways in which she has tried to combat this problem, such as coding and categorizing instances of online abuse she faces to collect evidence in her fight against it, Judd talks about what else can be done. She outlines the importance of digital media literacy looked at through a gendered lens in school, of Silicon Valley hiring women and producing content that does not denigrate women, of ensuring that law enforcement is media literate, that there exists legislation for online abuse and threats, that white men get involved in the struggle for female equality, to disrupt gendered violence as it is happening and finally, to believe women and girls.

In her uplifting speech, Ashley Judd is able to empower women, girls and their allies to help create a future free of gendered violence and abuse – both in the digital sphere and outside of it.