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“Your body, my choice” — a phrase popularized by white nationalist Nick Fuentes — became the reigning chant among men on the far right who commented on women’s posts across social media, especially those who expressed sorrow at the election results, the report found.
The phrase — a retaliatory play on “my body, my choice,” which for decades has been a rallying cry for advocates of reproductive rights — surged shortly after Fuentes posted on X on Election Day: “Your body, my choice. Forever.”
The phrase was mentioned thousands of times per day on various social platforms in the week after the election, peaking at more than 12,000 mentions Friday, according to the report, which was published Friday. The Institute for Strategic Dialogue found a 4,600% increase in mentions of the terms “your body, my choice” and “get back in the kitchen” on X in a 24-hour period late last week, the report said.
The institute said it also observed reports of people using misogynistic language to harass women offline, including alleged instances of young boys’ repeating “your body, my choice” on school campuses. Hats and T-shirts featuring the phrase have also popped up on some e-commerce sites.
“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,” co-author Isabelle Frances-Wright, the Institute for Strategic Dialogue’s U.S. director of technology, wrote in an email statement.
The report adds to other examples of hateful rhetoric spreading after Trump’s victory. Last week, scores of Black people across the country began receiving racist text messages telling them they had been chosen to pick cotton “at the nearest plantation” — prompting an investigation by the FBI and state law enforcement agencies. (The sources and motivations of the texts have not been established.)
Gender played a central role in this year’s election as Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign emphasized reproductive rights. Polls before the election had found a widening gender gap between the two candidates.
