Understanding the ways missing and murdered Indigenous women are framed and handled by social media users

Abstract

The media plays a large role in facilitating negative racial and gender ideologies about Indigenous women. In Canada, as we struggle with the national crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW), researchers have collected data from social media (SM) and identified that subversive texts about Indigenous women perpetuate a racialized violent discourse. Given that many Indigenous peoples, including Indigenous youth, have smart phones and/or other ways to access SM they too are exposed to the discourse that subjugates, vilifies and dehumanizes Indigenous women, many of whom are family or community members. Our research investigates the messages shared on #MMIW and identifies a reframing by hashtag users. The results assist in understanding how SM plays a role in perpetuating stereotypes about Indigenous peoples but also how SM can be used to mitigate those messages.