“Sending my love to #Kesha, I know how you feel”: Celebrity, Sexual Violence, and the Online Feminist Counter-Public

• In Event: Roundtable: Gender-Based Violence and Social Media: The Online Feminist Counter-Public, Alternative Justice, and Backlash

Abstract

With increasing public awareness that survivor-favorable results in sexual assault cases are difficult to secure, alternative avenues of justice for survivors of sexual violence have become a topic of academic and public interest. As a discursive space for feminist activism in social media spaces, the online feminist counter-public has emerged as an important site of support for survivors. In providing awareness-raising activism, survivor support, storytelling justice, and shaming justice, the online feminist counter-public attempts to address the justice gap for survivors. These processes are not free of problems, however, and due to the permeable nature of online counter-publics, survivors may find themselves being harassed by anti-feminist activists. The stakes can be even higher when allegations are leveled against prominent cultural figures, for whom social media is an important aspect of their branding and image management, media attention is high, and fans may be particularly motivated to support them. Using data from two case studies involving music industry workers, this presentation will discuss the benefits, drawbacks, and outcomes of the online feminist counter-public as a means of addressing the justice gap for survivors of sexual violence, with special attention paid to allegations against individuals with considerable public profile.

Author

• Christopher Worden, University of Guelph