Online harassment, how to react?
Published on 21 November 2019
With the spread and constant presence of smartphones and social media in our daily lives, online harassment now holds a real, particularly worrying place in the long list of failings that rot our presence on the Web.
Far be it from me to tell you that the Internet is nothing but a den of depravity that will destroy all of humanity, no, not yet, the Internet really brings some lovely things, that's undeniable. On the other hand it's really a significant vector for the development of hatred, and a gigantic magnifying glass on the violent behavior of certain individuals, who sometimes don't even realize the violence and abomination of the words they hurl without restraint at their detractors.
The phenomenon affects everyone: teenagers obviously, often ill-equipped to absorb the harassment they suffer, but also minorities, public figures, activists, and generally speaking anyone who dares to have a public activity on social media.
In the face of this, things are getting organized, laws are evolving or being strengthened, in particular thanks to Marlène Schiappa who works on the subject (sometimes clumsily, since she doesn't seem to have too much of a problem feeding the harassment against veiled women herself, but that's another subject I'll perhaps address another day).
Anyway. Online harassment is already here, it's massive, it takes many forms, and it won't wait for new laws to destroy people, so we need, starting today, to have the right behavior and the keys to protect ourselves from it. We're going to try to help with these few lines.
Not preventing it?
Some will give you advice on how to avoid harassment. The subjects not to bring up, the networks to avoid, the behaviors that can protect you. But no! You don't have to avoid anything at all. Whatever you feel like saying, showing, defending. You have the right to be what you are, to think and campaign for your causes, to fight, here and everywhere, there's no reason for it to be you who has to hide or limit yourself in your words and your battles.
Online harassment, just like street harassment, must not be fought by making individuals feel guilty for being what they are. It's the harassers, the trolls, the mobs who are at fault. Never you.
Yes, but then, how do you protect yourself?
You protect yourself in several ways:
– You try to be surrounded, not to be alone in your battles, to share your fears and anxieties in the face of hostile outsiders by sharing the bad moments, by talking to your loved ones, whether digital or not. In any case you don't stay alone facing harassment and you communicate.
– You take screenshots, you archive absolutely everything that comes in, the insults, the threats, you note the times, the names of the accounts or individuals who insult you, abuse you, defame you.
– Once archived, you mute and block the most violent trolls; it takes time sometimes, but don't hesitate to have a heavy hand, don't let anything slide, not even the beginning of verbal violence.
– You don't reply, you don't try to defend yourself! Depending on the case you can possibly clarify an idea, a source, to ease your conscience and explain a point, but there's no point feeding the trolls and trying to fight it out for hours. Your silence will be your best defense in most cases.
– You set your accounts to private, at least temporarily if you handle the pressure badly, it'll avoid part of the harassment, in particular the private messages (DMs) that you'll no longer receive.
– You avoid deleting your posts, except of course if you regret them or if you don't stand by them for personal reasons. But by deleting, you can restart the harassment machine with trolls who will have captured your posts/photos, and the harassment risks taking another form in which you'll no longer really be mentioned, that you may no longer see, but which risks being even more virulent as a result.
Do you press charges?
That's up to you. The right answer is yes. But if it panics you, seems too complex, and the harassment you're suffering seems surmountable and fleeting to you, no one will blame you for not pressing charges. You can perfectly well decide to choose a wait-and-see stance.
On the other hand, if you feel a form of fear, if you receive physical threats, if people are disclosing private things about you, photos, your address, information, or generally speaking if all this seems uncontrollable to you. Yes, you obviously press charges! Go accompanied if it worries you.
The law is fairly clear today: harassment refers to any behavior aimed at degrading your physical health or, more broadly, your psychological balance. It's broad, and that's good. Degrading or insulting remarks, repeatedly, on any internet medium (social media, blogs, forums, etc.), is an offense punishable by criminal sanctions. Even if the remarks are private.
The penalties incurred are heavy, to be precise:
If the harasser is an adult, they face a two-year prison sentence and a fine of 30,000 euros. If the victim is under 15, the sanctions can reach 3 years in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros.
If the harasser is a minor over 13 and their victim is over 15, they face one year in prison and a 7,500-euro fine. If their victim is under 15, the sentence is raised to 18 months.
If the harasser is a minor under 13, educational measures can be taken by the juvenile judge.
And concretely, the complaint?
If you've decided to press charges, you have to go to the police station or the gendarmerie to file a complaint.
Bring all your evidence, printed if possible. If you don't know the name of your harasser, file a complaint against X (person unknown). You have to be accompanied by your parents or legal guardians if you're a minor, and that's a good thing, it's important to involve them and talk to them in this kind of situation.
We say it one last time: if you're a victim of harassment, you must not stay alone, under any circumstances. And above all, keep firmly in mind that it's not your fault. You're a victim and you have rights.
Photo credit: DR
By Paingout