Social Media on Promoting Gender Equality: He for a She Movement

Social Media on Promoting Gender Equality: He for a She Movement 

Abstract 

On September twentieth, 2014, the UN launched the "HeForShe" campaign, the first of its kind. UN Secretary-General Mr. Ban Ki Moon globally launched the campaign. The HeForShe campaign is a solidarity movement advocating for gender equality among women and girls, safeguarding them against violence(Cole,2014). Gender inequality has persisted in different spheres; gender issues are women's affairs, and men are the game's leading players. The campaign objective is to try and galvanize as many men and boys to be advocates for gender equality by encouraging them to take action against inequalities faced by women and girls. Many individuals care about equality; however, they might not know how to promote it.   

The social media era marks the twenty-first century; It is an era where nearly everyone has a smartphone and can afford and access the internet. Thus, the social media campaign is an effective tool to increase the gender inequality movement through sharing experiences and connecting with others who face similar challenges can be helpful to women when men support women's rights. The "HeForShe" campaign is an interesting topic since it is easily said rather than done. It is easy for men to like the "HeForShe" campaign and even pledges, but what the movement asks men is a lot and even more challenging to be achieved. This research paper tackles the unanswered questions of whether the HeForShe" campaign achieved its online and offline objectives. 

Keywords: Gender inequality, Gender, Social Media, #HeForShe     

Introduction 

More than fifty per cent of the world's population used social media in the past social media served as an entertainment platform (Apuke & Omar, 2021). However, in the contemporary world, it has transformed into a platform that informs people and is a news source. Activists can reach a considerable number of people using the platforms. It is arguably correct to state that social media is the most influential platform for reaching the masses (Helberger, 2020). Digital activism can be defined as using digital technology in all activism movements. 

Moreover, the term can also refer to the expansion of digital technology in movements for social and political change (Fu, 2022). Gender inequality has been a notion that has been discussed ever since the industrial revolution during the nineteenth century. Women wanted equal opportunities as men in workplaces in the boardrooms. As a result, the feminist movement sprouted. Many individuals think feminism is about women who want to act bossy or overthrow men's position. According to Cole (2014), feminism is expounded as the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. This definition was seconded by Emma Watson, a British actress, during the HeForShe unveiling on September twentieth, 2014(Watson, 2014). Emma Watson was named UN Women Goodwill ambassador during the campaign's launch.  

The HeForShe website garnered over 100,000 male supporters in the first three days. The men pledged their commitment to the cause citing that the gender equality notion is not just a women's issue(Edwards, 2017). The early adopters of the campaign include celebrities and politicians, including Former U.S. President Barack Obama. Subsequently, 1.6 million men have signed up online, some being the president of Rwanda and Malawi, among others. The HeForShe campaign has been the subject of 2 a billion conversations on social media. 

Body 

Women are inching toward gender equality, but it is slow going. This results from the great divide between social classes that hinders full equality from being attained in society. Maryani et al. (2018) note that gender inequality results from gender construction, where one is not only valued as a human but rather based on whether you are a  man or a woman. Gender construction has created a patriarchal society, a social structure where power and authority are invested toward masculinity. Patriarchy makes men more powerful than women, thus exploiting and oppressing women. As a result, inequality becomes detrimental to women. 

The HeForShe movement seems more successful in developed countries than in third-world countries, characterized by underdevelopment and poverty( Stabile et al., 2020). Less developed countries have limited internet access since not everyone can access electricity, smartphones, or the internet. They have no time to waste on issues as simple as joining the movement. In return, they have to worry about hunger, unemployment, and poverty. Basically, in the real world, the gender inequality "demon" is, there in fact, very fierce; however, third-world countries do not have enough resources to combat the problem as someone in the United Kingdom or the United States. 

Nonetheless, despite patriarchy and the third-world problems posing a challenge in promoting gender equality, it does not mean there is no change or improvement in promoting gender equality(Maryani et al., 2018). Men can work hand in hand with women in promoting the feminist agenda through participating and supporting grassroots movements and involvement in better parenthood since men should serve as role models to young boys. They are teaching the boys how to handle women. This is because it is worth noting that men commit violence; thus, much effort should be put into changing men's attitudes and behaviours, which is the main objective of the HeForShe movement. Edwards(2017), minutes that recently, the HeForShe team has partnered with several NGOs globally to sponsor "Barbershop events" and seminars, among other activities, to enlighten men to understand how gender inequality affects women and the role they play in stopping it. 

The men's involvement in the HeForShe movement is critical because of the construct of masculinity that is day in and day out correlated with patriarchal and sex attitudes( Stabile et al., 2020). Men's participation in the deconstruction of sexism without remodeling the patriarchal values and oppression is problematic since it is the patriarchy that influences the men, and they feed their ego and masculinity from it, thus affecting the interactions of the individuals that strive to dismantle the sex oppression (Maryani et al. 2018). Another interesting issue with the HeForShe movement is that the men who actively support the movement online may just be participating for them to be seen and praised. Still, they could be invoking "enlightened sexism," where men with a feminist foundation could be eternalizing sexism through their actions, thus failing to interrupt sexist behaviors carried on by other men. Therefore, men's involvement in the HeForShe movement must always be habitually shepherded by a feminist agenda in partnership with women and women groups that are accountable. 

Literature review  

Fu, Yige, in his article: Research on the Influences of Social Media to Gender Equality(2022), notes that social media is a powerful tool to bring more attention to women's rights, encouraging policymakers to act. Fu acknowledges the HeForShe campaign as a successful online event following the pledges of prominent political male figures who have joined. The #meToo movement is another online movement that has successfully brought women's attention to sexual harassment, which echoed the HeForShe movement. However, Fu connotes the movement did attract a massive following if the founders and promoters were individuals who were recognized in society. It is difficult for ordinary individuals to achieve such milestones because they are hardly known. Thus, they will have to use more effort into their objectives to be discovered(2). 

Maryani, Janitra & Rahmawan, in their article: "Aliansi Laki-Laki Baru," The Role of Social Media in Promoting Gender Equality in Indonesia in 2018, also acknowledge social media as a crucial tool in fighting gender inequality. This article proves that the HeForShe movement made an impact offline. The authors explore and analyze how an online activist New Men's Alliance" was able to use social media tools like Facebook and Instagram to emphasize the advantages of men involved in fighting for gender equality. The authors note that the HeForShe movement online campaigns also bore fruits offline, giving a case example of the "Women's March Jakarta 2017" event where feminists, both men and women, supported gender equality on Women's Day. 

Stache, in her  2015 article: Advocacy and political potential at the Convergence of Hashtag Activism and Commerce elaborate on the potential pitfalls and benefits of hashtag activism. She notes that some individuals use the hashtag without proper knowledge of its meaning or the source. People may use the hashtag to highlight issues beyond examples of sexist media. The HeForShe movement was to raise awareness of inequality and violence against women. As a result, the #WhyIStayed campaign came up from victims of domestic abuse and emotional manipulation narrating their ordeals. The campaign was in response to critics of Janay Rice, who, despite being abused by her husband, Ray Rice, a prominent ex-footballer, chose to stay in her marriage. However, DiGiorno Pizza raised eyebrows when he tweeted, "#WhyIStayed You had pizza". He was bombarded with harsh criticism from social media; he later apologized, explaining that he had not read the hashtag before posting. The author notes that hashtag is good for activism; however, on the other hand, they may not be the most excellent tool for enlightening those who do not care about it or care less about its meaning or source. 

The article :# HeForShe: Uniting the Global Community Through Social Media, written by Hay, offers a fascinating view of the HeForShe movement in that it acknowledges men as the crucial players in ending gender inequality. The # HeForShe movement showed how equality for women is vital for society to function better. A community is made up of men, women and children; if one is struggling, the whole society is affected. The article offers a wider prospect of the role of every individual in the community and how gender inequality does favour men but limits women's potential, thus limiting the full potential of individuals in society. He acknowledges that the campaign united leaders, politicians and every individual in the society, thus sparking a public interest, a critical milestone for the movement. 

Research questions 

• How can social media be utilized effectively to challenge restrictive gender norms and stereotypes and promote gender equity?
• What are the challenges of using social media to promote gender equality?

 Methodology 

Often, scientific research is always categorized as qualitative and quantitative. Nonetheless, methodologists are increasingly encouraging the integration of qualitative and quantitative data as the center of mixed methods( Mix methodologies) (Taherdoost, 2022). Mixed research refers to using various research techniques (Qualitative and qualitative) in one research in relation to the purpose of the study and the nature of the research questions aimed at providing a better understanding of the object (Mackey & Bryfonski, 2018). In this research presentation, both qualitative and quantitative methodologies will be used. The target population will be men and boys to unravel to what degree the HeForShe campaign impacted them. 

For a quantitative study, data will be drawn from several secondary literature sources, including the #MeToo movement, the #LikeAGirl campaign, and the #HeForShe campaign. A review of Women's Media Center (@womensmediacntr), VIDA (@VIDA_lit), and The Everyday Sexism Project (@EverydaySexism) literature sources, including case studies of countries that are in the campaign for gender equality through the use of social media platforms, will be conducted for the qualitative analysis. Moreover, open-ended questions in the use of questionnaires will be used for a qualitative study(Mackey & Bryfonski, 2018). It will also be used to collect data if the use of social media in recruiting men to give pledges for the HeForShe campaign was successful. The data for the interviews will be collected from the HeForShe campaign interviews on the media through online questionnaires only for men only. 

While collecting data from questionnaires and online survey questions, the privacy and anonymity of the participants will be adhered to ( Quinton & Reynolds, 2017). Domestic violence is something that most women are afraid to talk about due to fear of social judgment. Women who are still abused sexually and physically by prominent men may fear speaking openly or their identity being unravelled while exposing them. Thus, confidentiality during the research will earn trust among the online participants. Confidentiality is where the participant's personal information will not be disclosed to the public (The names of the participants will then be kept anonymous, their identities will be sealed, and only authorized individuals can access them.   

Hypothesis 

The "HeForShe" campaign on social media has a positive impact on promoting gender equality, as it encourages men to become advocates for women's rights and challenges traditional gender roles and stereotypes. Social media is a valuable tool in activism since it provides greater scope for freedom, autonomy, and creativity than previous media (Maryaniet al., 2018). Moreover, through social media platforms, the campaign can reach a wider audience and create a more inclusive discussion on gender equality, ultimately leading to increased awareness and action toward achieving gender equality. 

Conclusion 

Social media can play a significant role in the promotion of gender equality. A vast audience can be reached, and marginalized communities have their voices amplified through social media. While social media is an indispensable tool, it does not come without its challenges, and much more work must be done to make it a safe and inclusive place for all (Mayr & Weller, 2017). The purpose of this presentation has been to provide an overview of the role of social media in promoting gender equality, provide examples of successful campaigns, and make recommendations for individuals and organizations looking to promote gender equality through social media. The HeForShe campaign showed that there are opportunities to improve men's involvement in promoting gender equality. Social media allows a variety of new thoughts and issues related to gender from all over the world, from different people, both men and women, from different cultures and values. Thus, social media offers a space that gives freedom to think and opportunities to act and make changes related to gender equality.                      

References

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