"If one woman is attacked, we all respond": feminist social media as an inclusive educational tool in the University of The Bahamas

Authors

  • Cristiana Fimiani University of the Bahamas

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31637/epsir-2024-1754

Keywords:

SFL, Gender-based violence, cyberfeminism, ICT, social media, University of The Bahamas, #NiUnaMenos, racism

Abstract

Introduction: This study demonstrates the advantages of incorporating feminist lexicon in the classroom using impactful social networks (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok) for female graduates of the Bachelor of Arts in Spanish at the University of The Bahamas to denounce male violence in New Providence and other islands of the archipelago. Methodology: A didactic sequence was developed that culminated in the recording of a feminist awareness-raising video to participate in TikTok's #NiUnaMenos challenge. The research analyses the impact of this methodology on the intrinsic motivation of female students, who are of African descent in Nassau, the city with the most cases of gender-based violence in 2022. Results: The application of social networking and feminist themes had a positive impact on the motivation of Caribbean students, whose gender (female) and race (black) identities make them particularly vulnerable to gender-based violence. Discussion: The study shows how empowerment through social networks can be an effective tool for denouncing gender-based violence, addressing the vulnerability of female students. Conclusions: The use of social networks in teaching feminist lexicon strengthens awareness and fight against gender-based violence, especially in vulnerable groups.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

Cristiana Fimiani, University of the Bahamas

Director of the Department of Foreign Languages and Coordinator of the Spanish Programme at the University of The Bahamas, where she is in charge of the University's international accreditation process. Researcher and lecturer in Spanish and Latin American Literature, Doctor cum Laude and Extraordinary Doctorate Award in Hispanic Philology from the University of Oviedo, Master in Spanish and Latin American Literature from the University of Granada and Master in Didactics of Spanish as a Foreign Language from the University of Nebrija in Madrid. His CV includes some thirty presentations at international conferences, as well as book publications, chapters in collective works, articles and reviews in prestigious academic journals.

References

Accossatto. R. y Sendra, M. (2018). Movimientos feministas en la era digital. Las estrategias comunicacionales del movimiento Ni Una Menos. Encuentros. Revista de Ciencias Humanas, Teoría Social y Pensamiento Crítico, 6(8), 117-136.

Aránguez Sánchez, T. (2019). La metodología de la concienciación feminista en la época de las redes sociales. Ámbitos. Revista Internacional de Comunicación, 45, 238-257. https://doi.org/10.12795/Ambitos.2019.i45.14 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12795/Ambitos.2019.i45.14

Arbuet Osuna, C. (2020). Feminismo/s. Entre el sincretismo y la paradoja. Debate feminista, 59, 94-114. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.22201/cieg.2594066xe.2020.59.05 DOI: https://doi.org/10.22201/cieg.2594066xe.2020.59.05

Caballero-Gálvez, A. A., Zaera, A., Tortajada, I. y Willem, C. (2022). Fe-MI-nismo en las redes sociales: riesgos y oportunidades para el feminismo contemporáneo. Atlánticas. Revista Internacional de Estudios Feministas, 7(1), 62-87. https://doi.org/10.17979/arief.2022.7.1.7049 DOI: https://doi.org/10.17979/arief.2022.7.1.7049

De Miguel, A. (2015). Neoliberalismo sexual. El mito de la libre elección. Cátedra.

Espinosa-Miñoso, Y. (2014). Una crítica descolonial a la epistemología feminista crítica. El Cotidiano, 184, 7-12. http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=32530724004

Gas-Barrachina, S. (2019). ¿En qué contribuye el feminismo producido en las redes sociales a la agenda feminista? Dossiers feministes, 25, 147-167. http://dx.doi.org/10.6035/Dossiers.2019.25.10 DOI: https://doi.org/10.6035/Dossiers.2019.25.10

Keller, J., Mendes, K. y Ringrose, J. (2016). Speaking “unspeakable things”; documenting digital feminist responses to rape culture. Journal of Gender Studies, 27(1), 22-36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09589236.2016.1211511 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09589236.2016.1211511

MarWiCK, A. (2010). Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity and Self-Branding in Web 2.0. New York University.

Montanaro, A. M. (2017). Una mirada al feminismo decolonial en América Latina. Dykinson, S. L.

Peña-Fernández, S., Larrondo-Ureta, A. y Morales-Gras, J. (2023). Feminismo, identidad de género y polarización en TikTok y Twitter. Comunicar. Revista Científica de Educomunicación, 31(75), 49-60. https://doi.org/10.3916/C75-2023-04 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3916/C75-2023-04

Szostak, N. (2013). Girls on Youtube: Gender Politics and the Potential for a Public Sphere. The McMaster Journal of Communication, 8, 47-58. https://doi.org/10.15173/mjc.v10i0.280 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15173/mjc.v10i0.280

Downloads

Published

2024-12-16

How to Cite

Fimiani, C. (2024). "If one woman is attacked, we all respond": feminist social media as an inclusive educational tool in the University of The Bahamas. European Public & Social Innovation Review, 9, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.31637/epsir-2024-1754

Issue

Vol. 9 (2024)

Section

INNOVATING IN SOCIAL AND COMMUNICATION NETWORKS

License

Copyright (c) 2024 Cristiana Fimiani

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under Creative Commons Non Commercial, No Derivatives Attribution 4.0. International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.), that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).