The intersection of anti-feminism and the tradwife movement

ISD Research Manager Cécile Simmons spoke to 20 Minutes about the anti-feminist tones of the tradwife movement, how it’s gone under the radar, and the internationalisation of it all. Cécile explains how the concept gained traction during the pandemic when more women were spending time at home and asking themselves questions on their way of life. Since then, the “return” to 1950s “traditional” family has been romanticised, tucked away under seemingly non-political, lifestyle videos.

“There is a wide ideological spectrum. Some of the trad wives produce content which superficially appears not to be political,” she said. “This allows them to reach new audiences by weaponising popular aesthetic movements on social media, such as cottagecore. Tradwives use highly visual content, and it can be difficult to identify the underlying political message without digging deeper.”

“These influencers borrow from mainstream communication tactics,” highlighting that influencers seek to bypass platforms’ content moderation and spread their message undetected.