One in three women has experienced online abuse, according to the domestic abuse charity Refuge, which has launched a tech safety website to better support victims. That's 11 million women in the UK.
Of these, one in six has faced this form of abuse from a current or former partner. While the majority of the abuse took place on other websites, such as Facebook or Instagram, 8% said they were targeted via X.
The impact of online abuse, Refuge found, included victims and survivors feeling fear, anxiety, shame and isolation. One in 10 felt suicidal as a result of the abuse.
Of course, plenty would argue that if people are so afraid of being abused and stalked online, they should just get off X. But why should women – and all the data shows that the majority of those abused online are women – give up social media, because of the threats we face? Why is it the responsibility of women to remove ourselves from public space, in order to be safe from threats and violence? Telling victims or those at risk of abuse to get off social media just gives free rein to the perpetrators. It does nothing to stop them.
It is hard to describe to someone who has not been targeted or stalked online, just how frightening it is to be told the block button could be taken away, and that someone who is threatening your wellbeing and sense of safety – and has threatened to take their abuse offline – will be able to see your content, share it, and use it to target you once again.
From being able to put a shield up between you and the random strangers (and bots) that scream abuse at you, to being able to prevent a very real threat from monitoring your online activity, the block button is an imperfect tool, but – I would argue – a needed one.
Take it away, and a lot of women will be seriously questioning how safe it is for them to remain on the site. Which is frustrating, as that is exactly what our abusers and stalkers – as well as Musk's far-right cheerleaders – want.
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