Shanghai Red House Incidence on Weibo: Praxis of New Feminist Cyberactivism in Mainland China

Abstract

This study explores the dynamics of feminist cyberactivism in China, using the Shanghai Red House Incidence as a case study to analyze the impact and limitations of social media, specifically Weibo, in advocating for women’s rights and feminist causes. Despite the increasing surveillance and censorship by the Chinese government, which has constrained traditional forms of activism, the paper reveals how women in China have adapted their strategies. By employing symbolic imagery, multiple hashtags, and referencing popular culture, these activists circumvent censorship, fostering a new form of de-organized, grassroots digital activism. At this point, no academic articles have been published on the incident. Leveraging Vegh’s cyberactivism categorization framework and analyzing a rich dataset of over 2,000 Weibo posts, this paper employs qualitative content analysis and quantitative analysis to uncover the nuanced ways feminist activism morphs within authoritarian confines. This research contributes to the understanding of how social media platforms serve both as spaces for feminist expression and as battlegrounds against state surveillance in China, highlighting the evolving nature of feminist cyberactivism in authoritarian contexts.