TW: mentions of SA and DV
Elon Musk’s latest victim of online attack is British MP Jess Phillips. Aired to his 210 million followers, he has called Phillips, a woman who has dedicated her political and personal life to battling violence against women, a “rape genocide apologist” and “evil witch”.
For anyone who has been following Elon Musk’s trail of far-right destruction on X, this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. He has a long history of using his platform to air transphobic, sexist, antisemitic and racist comments. Yet, I find this particular case deeply troubling. It’s a clear and stark indication of how far we have to go as a society in battling disinformation and protecting social activists in the public eye.
When I was new to the social activism space, Jess Phillip’s work showed me what real feminism was. Before becoming a Labour MP, Jess worked for Women’s Aid, building services for victims of human trafficking, sexual and domestic violence and exploitation. She has been on the frontline helping victims all her career. But what I’ve found most inspiring about Jess is that, when the rest of Westminster brushes misogyny under the carpet, she is always, and sometimes the only, advocate for vulnerable women. Every single year for almost a decade now she has stood up in Parliament on International Women’s Day and read out the full names of every single woman killed by a man in the last year in Britain. That was 98 women in her last count.
Elon Musk’s claims are unfounded. They couldn’t be further from the truth. Again, this is not surprising coming from a man who is cosy with Trump, who made over 30,000 false or misleading claims during his first Presidency. But worse than the blatant disinformation, Musk’s claims put Phillip’s safety at risk. Even before Musk’s comments, Phillips has faced rape and death threats by countless online users. Multiple men have served sentences for persistent harassment against her. Speaking to ITV News, Phillips again said this week she has had to increase levels of protection since Musk’s attack.
Elon Musk knows this. His comments about Jess are not throwaway, they are a calculated form of silencing, which actively endangers her. This is nothing new; the classic silencing technique is as old as patriarchy itself. For a man who has a brain that can build rockets, you would think he would be a bit more innovative…
Public and private harassment or threats of violence are methods which attempt to stop women who speak out against sexual assault, challenge patriarchy and fight against oppression. Or, sometimes just existing as a woman is reason enough for abuse. This silencing is not new, but centuries old. It is no coincidence that Musk called Phillips a “witch”, a term which has been used to justify the condemnation, and sometimes murder, of women since the 15th century. In Britain, I’m glad to say that men no longer literally burn women at the stake for witchcraft. Instead, they do a Musk: hide behind a keyboard and make totally ridiculous statements to feed their own sense of superiority.
I highly doubt Musk’s attack will stop Phillips’ campaigning. She has had to walk the political tightrope of being a female activist in the public eye her whole career and wades through misogyny daily. From everyone here at The New Feminist: Jess, we stand with you and all those tirelessly, bravely dedicating your life to making the world a safe place for everyone. And to Elon, shame on you.
