Cyberfeminism, Iranian Style

Abstract

The June 2009 uprising following Iran's presidential election sparked the immediate scattering of its women's rights leaders across the globe. Activists living in exile took their activities online to pursue on-the-ground projects, initiating online campaigns and raising feminist awareness. Seven years later, this transition to cyberspace has had innumerable consequences for Iran's feminist movement. This article examines five Iranian rights-based platforms—Bidarzani, Women's Watch, Feminism Everyday, My Stealthy Freedom, and ZananTV—and their use of social media to vocalize and extend women's rights advocacy. Given the flourishing of cyberfeminist projects, it is worth investigating both the methodologies employed and the unforeseen constraints and costs that have emerged. For instance, do these undertakings challenge women's political and economic status in Iran? Is their activism a new and unique form of feminism? This paper explores their move online, tracing the shifts in Iran's women's rights movement, its current challenges, and its potential vulnerabilities.