Emphasised, feared, despised and hegemonic: images of femininity in the US far-right digital ecosystem on Telegram channels

Abstract

In this article, we deliver an empirical analysis of far-right visualisations of womanhood on US Telegram channels. Previous studies show that the far right, which increasingly engages in misogynist, anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rhetoric, and opposition to feminism, is marked by the growing involvement of women in the roles of political leaders. Such engagement by women within the far right causes an ‘image problem’, as it makes the traditional gender image of wifely submission less convincing. Our analysis of images of womanhood shared on US far-right Telegram channels shows how far-right images of ‘approved’ performances of womanhood include transgressive gender performances of hegemonic femininity that are in conflict with conservative representations of womanhood in traditional nationalist ideology. Our findings also show how hateful images of liberal, non-binary and minority women serve as a tool for the construction of a variety of ‘approved’ far-right identity images of hegemonic femininity.