Digital Feminism and Mobilization Strategies Against Sexual Violence in Urban Kenya

African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 9, August 2026 | pp. 105–112

DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001261

Article Type: Original Research Article

Title: Digital Feminism and Mobilization Strategies Against Sexual Violence in Urban Kenya

Names of Authors: Dr. Grace W. Njeri¹, Dr. David M. Mwangi²

Authors’ Affiliations: ¹Department of Sociology, Gender and Development Studies, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya; ²School of Media and Digital Arts, Multimedia University of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract:
This study examines the mechanics and efficacy of digital feminist mobilization against sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) within urban Kenyan centers. Focusing on social media campaigns organized between 2024 and 2026, the research employs a digital ethnography framework combined with a content analysis of 15,000 algorithmic campaign footprints. The quantitative data show that localized hashtags generated a 65% increase in youth-led physical protests and legal follow-ups regarding high-profile domestic violence cases (p < 0.05). Qualitative interviews with 35 feminist organizers reveal that digital platforms offer unprecedented spaces for survivors to bypass traditional media gatekeepers, document structural injustices, and access mutual aid networks. However, the study highlights severe vulnerabilities, including targeted cyber-lynching, state-backed surveillance, and coordinated doxxing campaigns designed to intimidate prominent female activists. Furthermore, digital class divisions exclude rural and economically marginalized women from participating in these online protection circles. Regression profiling indicated that internet data costs act as a primary barrier, reducing sustained digital activism among lower-income urban populations by 55%. The study concludes that while digital spaces accelerate immediate public outrage, their capacity to enact structural policy reform remains constrained without formal institutional integration. We recommend the establishment of encrypted regional legal aid portals and safe digital hosting architectures to sustain online feminist movements.

Keywords: Digital Feminism, Social Media, Gender-Based Violence, Activism, Class Disparities, Kenya

Manuscript Timeline: Received: March 22, 2026; Revised: June 01, 2026; Accepted: July 05, 2026; Published: August 31, 2026.

Citation: Njeri, G. W., & Mwangi, D. M. (2026). Digital Feminism and Mobilization Strategies Against Sexual Violence in Urban Kenya. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(9), 105–112. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001261

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