Digital Media: From an Intersectional Feminist's Perspective
A
framework called intersectionality helps people understand how various facets
of a person's social and political identities—such as gender, sexual
orientation, caste, race, class, religion, and disability—come together to
produce distinctive forms of discrimination and privileges. The interjection of
various roads reflects a specific aspect of an individual that is either
rewarded or oppressed. Depending on how that person lives their life in
society, there may be one or many intersectionalities in that person.
The
phrase "intersectional feminist" was first used by Kimberle Crenshaw
in 1989. It is "a prism for viewing how diverse types of oppression often
function together and intensify each other."
The
degree of inequality varies for everyone around because social identities
overlap and converge, leading to experiences of various privileges and
discriminations. This means that inequality does not always occur in an equal
and measured manner. In order to better comprehend the scope of inequality and
the connections between different forms of oppression, intersectional feminism
examines the voices of people whose experiences coexist with those of other
forms of oppression.
Similar
to this, the protagonists of movies and daily soaps are portrayed as fair,
thin, and primarily straight women, neglecting the existence of women of any
other form. Contrarily, women with darker skin tones and different body types
are portrayed as domestic helpers and other supporting characters; this
illustrates the underlying prejudices we have against people of different races
and body kinds.
It
also demonstrates how the digital media stereotypes people with darker
complexions as belonging to the lower social classes, and how this leads to
prejudice and oppression against them. Men using makeup and displaying traits
other than clearly defined and generalised masculinity are also portrayed in a
very feminine manner. The popular media has created an idealised image of the
feminine that lumps all women together based on shared characteristics,
feelings, and behaviours while neglecting the reality of the situation.
Media
occasionally tries to shatter the taboos surrounding menstruation, but these
instances are incredibly rare. Most of the time, menstruation is either a
silent subject that is avoided or the images of the stereotyped beliefs are
created in front of the audience. "Meme" is another well-known
offspring of digital media. In spite of the fact that many memes make us laugh
and engage us on social media, some of them are incredibly offensive to the
oppressed class of society.
More
often than not, memes are seen to be based on rigid social norms like gender
roles, performativity, and body politics. These norms either directly or
indirectly ensnare us within the boundaries of the defined roles, as seen in
memes mocking men who wear makeup, plus-size models, or even women with body
hair.
I
found it impossible to overlook how glaringly different the characters
portraying various social strata were when I watched movies and daily soaps.
The middle class were surprisingly nowhere in the picture, portraying nothing
about their side of society. The lower classes are seen to be devalued,
discriminated against, and dressed in a specific traditional way. In contrast,
the upper class is seen to be extremely wealthy, influential, and dressed in
either extremely heavy pieces of jewellery and traditional clothes or in
western attire.
The
majority of the time, theirs is an invisible story. There is already a barrier
separating the classes since poverty is never accurately depicted in digital
media images. Another aspect I noticed in these programmes that depicted the
prejudice and discrimination we have as a society towards minorities was the
differentiation and bias towards the religion that makes up the majority and
the portrayal of minorities as lower-class individuals.
Females
are always seen to be placed lower than the males, both genders performing the
traditional gender roles, while homosexuality, transgender, and gender
non-conforming people are almost completely ignored, absent from every form of
the digital picture, and if shown, are shown in a very negative and unrealistic
manner. One other product of the digital age that shows the effects of gender
inequality and prejudice is pornography. Our society is prejudiced towards men,
as seen by sexual aggression against women and videography angled to appeal to
male viewers. Digital media play a significant role in the male gaze's
visibility across all media.
Today,
intersectional feminism is important because it paints a picture of the society
that includes the idea that racism, casteism, communalism, and other
class-related issues are all forms of oppression that affect women in addition
to the patriarchal system itself. It also aids in our comprehension of how
injustices, occult themes, and symbols of oppression that may have gone
unnoticed are related, providing us with a deeper and more comprehensive
perspective.
When
we look through these images from digital media, we often miss the painting of
reality that includes things like a misunderstanding or inaccurate depictions
of physiological processes like menstruation, images of the realities of
different sexual orientations and transgender people, exaggerated depictions of
poverty, etc. Additionally, we occasionally observe these spaces propagating
false notions about the distinctions and stereotypes between classes,
religions, and gender, such as the semiotics of fashion — the distinctions
between the dress styles of various classes, or the judging and characterising
of genders based on their attire and behaviour, etc., which instils in the
audience a sense of inequality and difference.
The
atmosphere is becoming more and more poisonous due to hypersexualization, which
also widens the gender difference in how one group views and values the other.
My
belief is that the current state of digital media is mostly working to widen
the inequality gap rather than enhancing the privileges of the superior. There
is a need for a bridge to make it easier to transition from the state of
oppression to the state of privileges, especially in light of all the ways that
our society has fostered these inequities. As a society, we ought to struggle
not only for justice but also for the eradication of all forms of oppression.
It
is a problem, according to Crenshaw, if you regard inequality as a
"them" problem or an unfortunate other problem. Thus, by using an
intersectional lens to examine how various communities and individuals are
resolving related challenges, we may be able to alter the social landscape and
build a picture of equality around the globe.