Antigender in 280 characters

Abstract: In the past years, antigenderism has become a growing coalition that has moved from being a monopoly of the Vatican to being picked up by Catholic associations and politicians, quickly reaching the general public. The word “gender” has become an empty signifier to attack queer and feminist agendas, sexual and reproductive rights but also gender studies scholars and courses. A big role in the spread of antigenderism has been played by social media, and Twitter is one that stands out among them for the immediacy of communication that its 280 characters limit requires. This non-participatory political nethnography, with the help of some tools of feminist critical discourse analysis, will aim at finding discursive patterns in the antigenderist tweets by Matteo Salvini and Giorgia Meloni, the two faces of the Italian right wing. Framed by a Foucauldian theoretical framework, operationalized with theories of othering and countermovements, this thesis will identify four discursive patterns associated with Salvini and Meloni’s antigenderism. Namely, epistemic power, appeals to the traditional family and the protection of children, whataboutism and femonationalism. These patterns will be guiding the theoretically informed analysis of the politicians’ tweets in order to gain a deeper understanding of the Italian antigender movement for the purpose of taking a first step towards challenging its discriminatory nature.