Citation

Harrison C. Affilia 2006; 21(4): 365-379.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0086109906292313

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article approaches cyberspace as a socially constructed space in which gendered power relations are replicated and examines how cyberspace has been expropriated to escalate child sexual abuse and other sexual offenses. Making connections between different forms of abuse of women and children demonstrates that feminist perspectives provide an essential framework for understanding how new information and communication technologies are reinforcing attitudes that degrade and dehumanize women and children. Analyzing the relationship between gender and other oppressions challenges the hegemony of discourses that emphasize freedom and the democratizing potential of cyberspace and shows how cyberspace is a site for increased violence and exploitation of women and children.