Growing up, I have always been on the internet — some might say “chronically online.” With unlimited access to the unfiltered internet, I grew up seeing the world’s hate for women and women having to fight for their rights. I saw the internet change its view of feminism and feminists. I saw the internet become less misogynistic and more women standing up for themselves.

The feminist movement at its core strives for gender equality and the dismantling of the oppressive systems put into place against women. Since the social media platform TikTok has become more popular in the past few years, so has the desire for female empowerment. The hashtags “#feminist” and “#feminism” have over a million posts combined. However, within the movement, an uncomfortable truth must be acknowledged: the misinterpretation of feminism on social media and online platforms. 

These online platforms have taken the original meaning of being a feminist — fighting for equal rights — and twisted it into a polarization of different groups. Whether it be a traditional wife, a radical feminist or a white feminist, women have taken to hating each other online for having different views on what feminism is. These debates undermine what feminism as a whole stands for: empowering all women, regardless of views. The rise of the tradwife on social media is an especially polarizing topic. Influencers like Nara Smith post videos of themselves doing “traditional wife chores” like cooking or cleaning, glamorizing the traditional lifestyle. This leads to backlash from radical feminists, who argue that the tradwife lifestyle is just conservatism repackaged. This is one of many places where two genres of online feminism intersect, and the women in both communities put each other down rather than find a middle ground. 

It is also hypocritical to see women selling products online to help increase the ‘femininity’ of their features. I see numerous TikToks and YouTube videos telling young teens to just wear makeup and dress in a revealing way, rebranding it as a form of feminism and female liberation. Yet if a teen happens to have ethnic features, does not fit the body standard that these women deem as superior and does not have the money to spend thousands of dollars on makeup, skincare and clothing, then they are seen as inferior and unattractive. They will get cyber bullied by women who think they are better than them.

Despite all of these issues, social media can have the potential to promote the feminist movement as it can increase the awareness of women’s rights issues, foster communication within communities and organizations and provide education on women’s history. Social media should be used to promote and empower women rather than demean them. It has the power to change how individuals feel about a topic and change their actions, so there is no better way to use it than in a good light.