From shame to visibility: Hashtag Feminism and Sexual Violence in Brazil

Heloisa Buarque De Almeida

doi:10.1590/1984-6487.sess.2019.33.02.a

Abstract

Abstract This work reflects on Internet and social network campaigns against sexual harassment and sexual violence, from the moment they first appeared in alternative media and then reached mainstream news stories. In Brazil, such discussion on media has shown this struggle for recognition since 2013. With data from alternative and the hegemonic media from 20132018 focusing on “No more catcalling” (Chega de fiu fiu) and “My first harassment” (Meu primeiro assédio) campaigns and the NGO Think Olga, the article discusses the attempts made by the feminist field to change what they call “rape culture” through images and narratives of the self, searching for voice and recognition. The hegemonic media, nevertheless, prefer to focus on crime (such as paedophilia) and dramatic stories that are best sellers, and therefore change some of the meanings in dispute.

Highlights

When I was eleven, my body betrayed me.1 We are not hiding our stories anymore.The criminals who have violated us should be ashamed of #FirstHarassment, not us.2This article aims to understand how categories of sexual abuse are being constituted and discussed in the public arena, covering media productions, Internet and social network content and the way meanings are disputed, especially when they travel through different types of media.3 To a certain extent, this process can be understood as demands for recognition of women’s rights
Think Olga analyses of around 3 thousand tweets show most victims’ ages vary from 6 to 13 years old. 26. Those cases seem to match some typical cases known from previous research on sexual violence in Brazil, data from rape services in the public health system
32 Emiliano Urbim, Joana Dale e Thais Lobo (08.11.2015) “Tocados pelo #primeiroassedio, homens fazem meaculpa”, O Globo on line, available at https://oglobo.globo.com/sociedade/ tocados-pelo-primeiroassedio-homens-fazem-meaculpa-17975262 accessed in 03.02.2018

Summary

Introduction

When I was eleven, my body betrayed me. We are not hiding our stories anymore. The criminals who have violated us should be ashamed of #FirstHarassment, not us.. I describe here a process of demanding social recognition (Honneth, 2003, Fraser, 1996) for relatively new notions of sexual harassment that have been in formation or transformation in the Brazilian public arena in recent years Both the hegemonic media (Brazilian larger cultural industries, such as Rede Globo) and alternative media – considered as a counter-public sphere (Fraser, 1990) – are mentioned. Think Olga and other feminist groups were fighting for cultural changes, a somewhat unexpected consequence of their campaigns was the production of an entirely new crime, that of sexual importuning (importunação sexual)”.14 Such changes in names, or in classificatory categories, express changes in sensibilities concerning notions of violence that are at the root of processes leading to the formation of Human Rights (see Lynn Hunt 2008). In 2015 Brazil had more than 63 million Facebook users, and the figures have risen in the last years

Think Olga and the sexual harassment case

Findings

Concluding remarks