We must create safer online spaces for women with disabilities

REPORTING violence online is not accessible or inclusive for women with disabilities. Limited information and poor platform responses to violence make online spaces more dangerous for them. This is the harsh reality that we must also confront on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities today.

- EUNICE TUNGGAL BABALWA TYABASHE-PHUME KAREN SOLDATIC LIEKETSENG NED

THE risks of technology-facilitated gender-based violence are compounded for women with disabilities because they have a higher level of dependence on technology for work, communication and community.

(Independent Newspapers Archive)

Our recent study on technology-facilitated violence against women with disabilities shows that many women with disabilities often receive demeaning and threatening messages. These messages are not uncommon. In fact, they reflect a disturbing reality for many women with disabilities navigating online spaces. Digital platforms were once seen as gateways to empowerment but are increasingly becoming sites of harm. Technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) is not just a virtual issue; it’s a deeply traumatic experience that mirrors and amplifies the misogyny and ableism of the offline world.

Technology-facilitated gender-based violence includes online harassment, doxxing, stalking, image-based abuse, and other forms of digital harm. For women with disabilities, the risks are compounded by several factors, including: a higher level of dependence on technology for work, communication and community, systemic and structural experiences of isolation and vulnerability, and overall inaccessible reporting and online safety systems within digital technologies. With all of these factors and intersecting vulnerabilities, women with disabilities are significantly disproportionately impacted by TFGBV, and yet their experiences are so frequently overlooked. As one participant in our study remarked: “I think I can speak on behalf of other women with disabilities that we have been really, really struggling on social media”