A new Instagram account encourages women to send in screenshots of unsolicited and sexually explicit direct messages they have received on social media, in the hopes of raising awareness about the problem and educating men on what kind of behaviour crosses the line.
Nútíminn reports that the account, called “Fávitar” (“Idiots”), is the brainchild of Sólborg Guðbrandsdóttir and Styrmir Barkarsson. The account posts submitted screencaps from women who have had the unfortunately all-too-common experience of receiving an unsolicited and sexually explicit DM from someone. The identities of all parties involved are kept anonymous.
While Grapevine is loathe to translate these messages on a work-safe site, the nature of the messages run the gamut from generally pervish to outright threatening.
Sólborg told reporters that she hopes the account will raise awareness of this problem, that “women are labeled as ‘sluts’, are objectified and so forth. My friend Styrmir got in touch with me and asked me to take part in this. He lives in Sweden and recently found a similar Instagram account.”
She emphasises that this experience is something many, if not most, women have had to endure.
“I think, for example, that an unbelievable number of women have received unsolicited penis photos imposed upon them,” she said. “This is something that absolutely needs to change.”
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