Counter-Discourses Towards Digital Feminist Activism in South Africa: A Case of #Menaretrash

The #MenAreTrash digital feminist activism (DFA) emerged in South Africa (SA) as a response to the prevalence of violence against women (VAW), including issues of rape, and femicide. However, the #MenAreTrash DFA was met with resistance in the form of counter-discourses, most notably through the #NotAllMen social media hashtag. While prior research has viewed these counter-discourses as fundamentally anti-feminist and misogynist, this study adopted a more nuanced approach to understand the alternative perspectives of resistance towards the #MenAreTrash discourse. The study employed qualitative methods that include in-depth interviews and secondary multimedia sources and drew on counter-discourse theory as an analytical tool to examine the narratives of those who challenged the #MenAreTrash DFA. The findings highlight that the counter-discourses against #MenAreTrash were driven by the perception that the discourse unfairly generalises all men as inherently violent, abusive, rapists and murderers. Critics argue that the slogan disregard the existence of non-violent, pro-feminist men who are committed to addressing VAW while in the process alienating potential allies who could actively contribute to the cause. The study emphasizes that resistance towards #MenAreTrash DFA was not entirely rooted in anti-feminism, rather, it operated as a counter-discourse that towards a seemingly hegemonic discourse of #MenAreTrash. The study concludes by recommending that future DFA should consider more constructive engagement strategies to include men as allies rather than adversaries. By acknowledging the presence of supportive men, feminist movements can potentially strengthen their impact and achieve broader social change in combating issues of VAW, rape and femicide in SA and beyond.