Spring 98

by Jo Sutton

The Internet is a vital tool which we can use to further women’s equality. The development of the Internet as a rapid means of information exchange has resulted in new opportunities and forms of participation in the broad political process. An increasing number of social activists have integrated the new communications technologies as an additional and powerful tool for their work. The uses of this tool are still being developed, offering new avenues to explore and further imaginative ways of working.

The possibilities of using the Internet for activist work have also resulted in the growth of new groups, for whom the technology is seen, from the beginning, as an integral part of their activism. In some cases, people working online start with a background in technology. They have found ways to apply their politics using the skills they already have. In others, people with a background in organizing have been willing to experiment with new ideas and extend their work. The combination of women and women’s groups on the continuum between technology and organizing, and the possibilities which this enables, is part of feminist developments which have been taking place over the past few years on the Internet.

The Internet is an ideal place to work for social change, as an individual or group. A variety of methods can be used to bring attention to issues, to promote awareness, and to support groups to grow in strength and numbers.

The Internet offers several tools, and each needs to be used strategically. Email, mailing lists, chat rooms and the World Wide Web can achieve different parts of the same purpose. Email is very effective for personal correspondence, passing messages to selected individuals and organizations. It is a useful tool for sharing information, exchanging views, planning and strategizing. Email makes it possible to quickly follow up on meetings and to refer to materials your group has sent out.

Email can also be effective for sending messages to politicians and public servants. Because an email address may not give a geographical location, it is a good idea to include this in your message to politicians, making clear that you are a constituent. They may be more responsive if they think you are able to vote for them. Most computers used by people in government are networked, meaning that your email can travel up hierarchies and through their networks. In terms of the hierarchy of correspondence with politicians, email is not usually as important as a letter received through the regular mail.

The transparent process makes mailing lists a powerful tool. Lively, political lists sometimes have subscribers who are politicians and public servants. This can be very useful because they, along with the activists, can see the high level of participation.

Email can be used to run meetings and even hold elections. Following the Women’s Internet Conference, participants took part in an online election to put forward representatives on a national committee to put our case for better Internet access for women’s groups. Six candidates stepped forward, all very well qualified. Each sent to the mailing list a short statement about herself, and what she could offer to further our issues. Voting was handled by a neutral person. Deadlines were short. The immediate mandate given to the candidates gave them additional strength to represent our views. It also kept our representatives close to the grassroots. The high level of level of participation enabled us to make a clear case that women are angry at our specific exclusion from “public” programs, and that resources for women’s groups need to be made available to enable women’s access and participation.

Web sites are a wonderful means to make your issues visible, and to encourage participation in your campaigns and events. They ensure your viewpoint is available at any time of the day or night, and are best accompanied by ongoing publicity about your Web site’s existence and how to find it, with links to it from other similar Web sites. The development of good links to and from other Web sites is an important part of using the Internet to organize. Some time has to be spent finding like-minded Web sites, then emailing the group or individual suggesting they link to your site. Some women use a Web Ring to offer a tour of women’s sites. Others produce categorized lists. Whatever methods are used, it is important to have the links, to maintain them and to publicize them so that your message gets to as many people as possible.

Women’s groups’ unwelcome status as “special interest group” was the lead on the Women’s Internet Conference Web site - a very public place where we hoped we could cause shame at the way Canadian women were being treated. The updated site is still available to anyone who can access the WWW at:

www.grannyg.bc.ca/confer

It now contains the proceedings and recommendations developed by women at the conference, in both French and English. While print versions of these documents are available, anyone can download and print them out, as they could with pre-conference materials. Or as one person said “Even if you lose your papers, you can always download them again”.

Consistent use of the Internet also ensured that our presence was seen regularly. The pre-and post conference mailing list told of high levels of participation, indicated the main issues, and how a range of participants viewed them. Activity in the form of debate, ideas and information being passed around a mailing list made it clear to everyone involved that women were mobilizing. It gave momentum to women’s groups, and ensured that those in a position to change the implementation of social policy knew our issues and just how very serious we were. It gave us strength in a way which was continuous, regularly reminding everyone of our presence and work.

While having a few public servants listening in to our online debates can sometimes be useful, we also need to be able to tell government what we need and expect from their online presence. Such things as regular updates of their work, how to communicate directly with them, public consultations, a calendar of events, who to contact for what issue, and the digitizing of their documents, will all contribute to a wider level of public participation and a more responsive government.

There is much creativity in the way women are developing our online skills and access. While the fight for women’s access to the new communications technologies is far from over, we can work to find ways to participate and grow. In Victoria, BC, Bridges for Women uses their local public library to show women how to use the Internet. Every library across Canada is now online, as are many schools, with more access sites opening. We do not need a computer at home to use the Internet in our work, and to be able to participate in online networking and work for women’s equality. We can develop our use of this tool to bring more women into the political process and to support our full democratic participation in the future.

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