The price you pay for activism – but it won’t stop us
[Warning: threatening, sexually violent language]
Caitlin Roper, my fellow Collective Shout activist in the West, has put together this montage of some of the abusive and threatening tweets we receive on a regular basis. We want people to know just how bad this is. We don’t believe women who speak out on issues should be threatened like this. Police have taken no action.
If you don’t think twitter should be used as a conduit for rape threats please support our Change.org petition.
See also: ‘Why do these people hate women so much?’, Gretel Killeen, Mamma Mia, July 31, 2013
‘Tax Office admits it gave unacceptable response after staff member’s tweet to Melinda Tankard Reist’, MTR, June 14, 2013
‘Women bloggers call for stop to hateful trolling by misogynist men’, MTR, November 11, 2011 (includes link to magazine feature by Christine Jackman about abuse of myself and others)
August 1st, 2013 at 4:11 pm
These accounts should be suspended immediately. How perverse!
August 1st, 2013 at 5:23 pm
I can’t believe that people have this sort of filth in their heads, let alone the ability and willingness to actually come out and say it.
Good grief, I actually feel physically ill.
I really hope I never meet any of these men.
August 1st, 2013 at 6:40 pm
Perhaps Twitter is finally listening? Although it remains to be seen how they will handle reported abuses.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it/twitter-to-add-anti-abuse-button/story-e6frgakx-1226688445400
August 1st, 2013 at 6:51 pm
This is the reality of women’s lives – wherein innumerable men can access their social media websites and immediately send vile male threats of sexual violence to any woman they consider to be challenging their male power.
Yet still sadly innumerable women refuse to accept the reality and that is male hatred/male contempt for women is pandemic and not ‘just a few bad apples’ or even ‘just a few trolls (sex of troll is never stated of course because that would be sexist or discrimination against men!), or even ‘losers.’ ‘Losers’ don’t engage in subjecting women to male threats of sexual violence rather these men know they have the power and right to continue doing so because their male supremacist legal system and police forces have more important issues to focus on such as theft of male property; theft of male owned cars and of course not forgetting fraud whereby a male(s) has his money stolen!
The men in political power and the men who operate the various police forces aren’t interested in prosecuting and convicting those innumerable men who consider it their innate right to subject any woman to serial intimidation and threats of male violence. Instead these male bastions of Male Supremacist System claim ‘issue is trivial;’ ‘issue isn’t important; or even tell women ‘get a thick skin because if you can’t you shouldn’t be accessing the internet!’
Mens’ excuses/denials are limitless which is why this evidence of what men actually say and write to women is so important. However, despite the evidence men will continue to claim ‘issue isn’t important because it is harmless – words can’t hurt you women!’
Really? I always wonder why Racism, Homophobia and Religious Hatred are all considered to be ‘hate crimes directed at specific persons/groups and the answer as always is because men are included/dominate these groups.’ Mens’ issues are the only real issues apparently and don’t be surprised to hear this latest episode of pandemic male hatred/male contempt for women will be swiftly forgotten by malestream media.
Don’t just focus on Twitter – go to the roots of the issue because these men didn’t magically create their vile sadistic male threats of sexual violence all by themselves. Mens’ malestream pornography is being imitated by these women-hating males and much of these men’s sexualised insults are copied directly from the porn they avidly view. So mens’ claim that pornography is ‘fantasy’ and has no relation whatsoever with how men view women is wrong as evidenced by these women-hating males repeating the same vile sexualised insults as is contained in mens’ porn. Not forgetting it is but one small step for a woman-hating male to enact his male threats of sexual violence against women which is why male violence against women and girls in all its forms is pandemic and global. But men refuse to ‘join up the dots’ and refuse to accept there is a clear pattern of male behaviour. Also men commit these acts of violence against women because they can and other men will not shame them but instead will applaud or ignore these male actions.
At least this latest episode of pandemic male hatred/male contempt for women proves how easy it is to dehumanise the majority of human race but men will never accept this is happening because remember ‘if issue doesn’t negatively impact men or erode mens’ male rights and male power, then issue isn’t important or relevant!’
August 1st, 2013 at 6:52 pm
I am gasping for air here. Horrified. Bewildered. I am so, so sorry that you have to deal with this. And that we live in a world where this filth and violence even exists.
Simply staggering.
Thank you for your strength and courage. I believe that what you do makes a difference.
Justin
August 1st, 2013 at 6:55 pm
Thank you so much Justin, your support is greatly appreciated.
August 1st, 2013 at 6:55 pm
ALWAYS brilliant, and always value having your comments here Hecuba.
August 1st, 2013 at 6:56 pm
Yes it does Adelaine.
August 1st, 2013 at 6:56 pm
It really is hard to believe isn’t it. And yes, same.
August 1st, 2013 at 6:57 pm
Agree Arna. I don’t understand why they are allowed to use Twitter as a conduit for their threats and violence. (Great to see you here by the way, we must catch up again soon!).
August 2nd, 2013 at 10:26 am
vile, sick, i almost lost my coffee reading these offensive rantings
August 3rd, 2013 at 6:01 am
I am a 16 year old high school student and I feel though the tolerance for things like this start much earlier than most think. I remember shouting “rape!” when somebody was being annoying was fun in middle school and teachers really didn’t say anything. It was only in 8th grade when my health teacher all informed us that rape is not a joke and yelling things like “he’s raping me” when you get poked in the side were actually threats and that you get could somebody in huge trouble for that. Moral to the story, it should be taught much earlier in childhood what rape is, how it happens, how to protect yourself and to teach youngsters that it’s a horrible act of violence instead of a joke. I’m ashamed that I said when I was 11 and 12 but it’s not something I was taught enough about to understand until now as a junior in high school.