ISD report details rise in “your body, my choice” and other misogynistic content following the US elections

After Donald Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris to secure a second presidential term, ISD researchers analyzed a surge in online misogynistic attacks directed towards women. Our findings are detailed in a new Digital Dispatch, which received coverage in Bloomberg, Chicago Tribune, The New Republic, WIRED, and various other media outlets. 

Of particular note is the sexist phrase “your body, my choice,” a variation on the pro-choice slogan “my body, my choice.” White nationalist Nick Fuentes posted “Your body, my choice. Forever” on X, which garnered 35 million views as of November 8, according to ISD findings. This phrase and other similar expressions experienced a 4,600% increase on X within 24 hours of the election results.  

In addition, the term trended on Facebook, while TikTok users faced harassment, including rape threats and “your body, my choice” messages from other accounts. Reports also indicated that girls and women were targeted with the same harmful language offline.  

“One of the alarming characteristics of this trend is how quickly online influencers, known for propagating hate, can influence both online and offline behaviors, most especially the behaviors of young men,” Isabelle Frances-Wright, ISD’s Director of Technology and Society and the study’s co-author, told NBC News. 

CNN aired two segments that featured the ISD report, prominently displaying a graph from the Digital Dispatch which shows the sharp spike of mentions in sexist terms across various platforms.  

Following the release of the ISD report on the surge of hateful language towards women, reporters from media outlets such as Newsweek, Fast Company, and CNN reached out to social media platforms for comment. 

A TikTok representative responding to reporters said “your body, my choice” violated community guidelines, and the company would remove harassing videos containing the phrase. CNN also reported that TikTok removed three videos that “appeared to suggest threats of retaliatory violence.” 

It was later reported that a woman went to visit Fuentes’ home and it led to an altercation involving pepper spray.

“I think what this trend is showing us, though, is that this kind of language is unprecedented in this country,” said Jiore Craig, Resident Senior Fellow of Digital Integrity at ISD, to CBS News. “And I think that what pretty we’re sure of, based on research, is that the majority of Americans are not interested in hearing this kind of language.”

Our findings were also featured in the New Yorker, France 24, Washington Post the Guardian, MSNBC, the Chicago Tribune and more.