APC held a global meeting on gender, sexuality and the internet in Malaysia between 12 and 17 April 2014, to explore and develop the collective understanding of what a feminist internet looks like. One of the goals of the meeting was to find, within a sex-positive queer framework, an agreement on core feminist principles for a transformative internet, in order to develop a set of evolving Feminist Principles of the Internet.



“Have we taken over the internet or has it taken us over?”; “Are we using or being used by the internet?”; “How can we resist the globalised commodification of the internet and defend it as open, diffused, decentralised and subversive?”; “Is the divide between our online and offline lives blurring? Is this empowering or threatening?” These were some of the fascinating questions raised during the intense debates that took place for three days, when academics, feminist and queer activists, and internet rights and policy specialists from diverse organisations and networks coming from many different countries reflected on and analysed contentious issues of gender, sexuality and the internet, including questions around “harmful content”, pornography, “hate speech”, gender-based violence and sexual rights. We invite you to look through some of the materials reflecting the debates that took place during the meeting.

Feminist Principles of the Internet

apc
Over three days, the participants discussed and debated intersections of gender, sexuality, and the internet – not only as a tool – but as a new public space. In thinking through these issues, the participants at the meeting developed a set of *15 feminist principles of the internet*. These are designed to be an evolving document that informs our work on gender and technology, as well as influences our policy-making discussions when it comes to internet governance.

Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet

apc
We invite you to join our Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality, & the Internet to explore and develop our collective understanding of what a feminist internet looks like. The meeting will be held in Malaysia between April 12 and 17 and brings together scholars, activists, and policy specialists from local, regional, and international organizations and networks.

What does it take to create a feminist internet?

flavia
Is a feminist internet possible? How has the internet shifted the way we understand power, politics, activism and agency? These are the insights of many activists under the call to #imagineafeministinternet.

Video: Feminist talks on a feminist internet

flavia
During APC's Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet where we explored our collective understanding of what a feminist internet looks like, we asked participants to tell us their vision of a feminist internet.

Panel on “Power, Politics and Agency” to #imagineafeministinternet

flavia
During the first day of the Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet which ocurred in Port Dickson, Malaysia, to explore the collective understanding of what a feminist internet looks like, a panel on “Power, politics and agency” took place with the participation of Chat Garcia Ramilo from the Philippines, Joy Liddicoat from New Zealand, Horacio Sívori from Brazil, Valentina Pellizer from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bishakha Datta from India, and Sheena Magenya from Kenya.

Interview with Nana Darkoa: Adventures from the bedroom of an African woman

flavia
Three (and many more) online is not a crowd – neither online nor offline. That is what the multi-award-winning blog "Adventures from the bedrooms of African women" posits. In this interview, one of the blog's founders and writers, Nana Darkoa from Ghana, talks about how this space started, what the boundaries are, and what it takes to build a safe and free space where African women can openly discuss a variety of issues related to sex, pleasure and sexuality – in spite of trolls and bad kissers.

Sex and the internet: Intersectionality in internet rights

shawna
Why are internet rights important to sexual rights activists and why are sexual rights important to internet rights activists? These two questions formed the basis for discussion at a preparatory meeting for a global dialogue on gender, sexuality and the internet taking place in Malaysia.

Imagining a misogyny-free internet

Rohini Lakshane
This is the first in a series of posts reporting on the Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet held in Port Dickson, Malaysia from April 13 to 17, 2014, to envision a feminist internet and to evolve a framework for it. Around 50 activists working on gender rights, sexual rights and internet rights in different parts of the world had come together for the meeting.

Imagining a digitally secure, feminist internet

Rohini Lakshane
This is the second in a series of posts reporting on the Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet held in Port Dickson, Malaysia from April 13 to 17, 2014, to envision a feminist internet and to evolve a framework for it. Around 50 activists working on gender rights, sexual rights and Internet rights in different parts of the world had come together for the meeting.

Digital Security – from silencing to claiming safe spaces

jennifer
Discourses on issues of safety are not new to feminists. Strategies to resist sexual harassment in the office, verbal abuse on the streets, physical violence in the home, shaming in social spaces and sexualised threats to women human rights defenders are continually being revisited and reworked. Often this abuse is about the silencing of women's voices and the marginalisation in social and political spaces. Given the blurred lines between online and offline realities and activism, being safe and secure in both universes is critical.

#imagineafeministinternet: "No topic was off limit," says Nana Darkoa

Nana Darkoa
I want to share with you some of the highlights of the meeting. The nutshell version is that it was an extremely useful meeting, relevant to my day job (as a Communications Specialist) and absolutely relevant to what we do on this blog. Part of what the made the meeting amazing was that I got to meet many feminists, queer activists and techies from all over the world in particular from the Global South. That alone was amazing.

Sexuality, feminism, activism and the internet we dream of

flavia
"Which is the internet we dreamed of?" was the main question raised during the first day of the "Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet":https://www.apc.org/en/events/global-meeting-gender-sexuality-internet which is taking place in Port Dickson, Malaysia, until April 17th, to explore and develop the collective understanding of what a feminist internet looks like. What did we expect from the internet 10, 15 or 20 years ago? What did we hope the internet would do for feminism and social activism? What were the milestones during this time? How did it affect women's movements? And how do we live our lives on the internet today as activists?

APC launches collaborative initiative to protect, promote and defend sexual rights online

shawna
From April 12th - 17th, APC's Women's Rights and Communications Information Policy programmes will bring together activists working in the sexual rights movement and internet rights movement to a global dialogue on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet in Port Dickson, Malaysia.

Conversation with Maureen James, Funding and Strategy Specialist at IFEX

Syar

Maureen James is Funding and Strategy Specialist at the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) where she has been mobilising funds to support implementation of IFEX programmes and projects since 2003. Maureen has 20 years of experience working at Canadian and international non-profit organizations, all of them networks working together for change – including Web Networks, the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and now IFEX.

During her attendance at APC’s Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and the Internet in Malaysia, Syar S.

Time to come out!: Pioneering women in history of technology

Anonymous (not verified)
Check out these videos of Jac sm Kee introducing these women's stories and contributions to technology during the Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and Technology in April 2014.

Sexual rights, internet rights, and feminism!

RituSrivastava
Sexual rights! What are you talking about? Does this kind of right exist in India? I never thought about it before I attended Global Meeting on Gender, Sexuality and Technology.
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