Delegates to this year’s WhiriaNgā Kaha Workplace Inclusion Aotearoa conference can step inside the realities of online abuse through a unique art installation.
Inside the Glass Cage isan exhibition that draws on quotes from interviews with women in politics,journalism and academia to explore the personal, professional and political consequences of online hostility.
It is based on a Marsden Fund–supported research project led by Te Kunenga Ki Pūrehuroa Massey University academics Associate Professor Suze Wilson, Professor Rochelle Stewart-Withers and Professor Sarah Riley, along with independent scholar Dr Tracey Nicholls.
Showing for the first time outside Wellington, the glass cages are constructed from Perspex panels clipped together into incomplete hexagons, allowing audiences to physically enter the space and read what women have said about their experiences of online abuse.
“We want audiences to feel what it’s like to be surrounded by such hostility, to better understand how online misogyny and racism actually function,” Dr Wilson says.
The first cage displays examples of the vitriolic language directed at the women online, while the second features quotes describing how the abuse and threats affected them emotionally and physically.
The third cage presents the strategies the women used to resist or cope with the abuse and continue with their careers and lives.
“We wanted to end on a positive note – the third cage points to the courage and agency of the women and reminds people this is not simply a narrative of victimhood.”
Conference delegates can learn more about the project in the Systems Lab session The real-world impact of online abuse targeting women leaders, part of the conference day one programme. Drawing on both personal experience and research findings, Dr Wilson and Dr Siouxsie Wiles will discuss how online hostility directly impacts women’s professional lives and leadership pathways.
Dr Wiles is an award-winning microbiologist and science communicator who, following sustained misogynistic abuse during Covid-19, brought an employment case that highlighted the blurred line between digital abuse and real-world professional harm.
The session will go beyond the research findings to give delegates a wider sense of the prevalence and nature of online misogyny. Dr Wilson will also share themes that emerged when interviewed women were asked what organisational support they would have liked to receive.
“These aren’t just words on a screen; they are creating real-world effects for women. Maybe 20 years ago it was true to say there was our real life and then there was the online world,and the two were very different. But now online platforms are a big part of howwe demonstrate to the world who we are, and that kind of separation no longer makes sense.”
She hopes to highlight what organisations can do to make a real difference for women experiencing online abuse or misogyny.
“Even if you can’t stop the hate,you can provide support rather than leaving people feeling abandoned by their own side as well.”
Whiria Ngā Kaha Workplace Inclusion Aotearoa takes place in Auckland from 5 May to 6 May. You can see the full programme on our website. Early bird registrations are available until 28 February – register now and save.