In this article, we report on the findings from a study that explores Nepali feminist activists’ discursive narratives of online misogyny that they experienced on X and Facebook platforms. Using feminist critical discourse analysis (FCDA) as a theoretical lens, we analyse data from semi-structured interviews with 20 prominent Nepali feminist activists who played pivotal roles in initiating and advancing two contemporary feminist hashtag movements in Nepal: #RageAgainstRape and #JusticeForNirmala. Our findings demonstrate that these feminist activists have predominantly employed four discursive strategies, such as ‘Us’ versus ‘Them’ dichotomy, hyperboles, rhetorical questions, and modality, to highlight their experiences of online hostility, its impacts on them, and how they navigated its effects. Through these strategies, they depict misogynistic forces and attackers as ideological opponents, while portraying themselves and their supporters as tireless and responsible agents of social justice. These strategies exhibit Nepali feminist activists’ strong determination to co-create counter discourses against misogyny and persistently fight for social justice.
Ghimire et al. (Thu,) studied this question.