This post written by Raisa Wickrematunge accompanied by photographs by Deshan Tennekoon, originally appeared on Groundviews, an award-winning citizen journalism website in Sri Lanka. An edited version is published below as part of a content-sharing agreement with Global Voices. She strikes a pose for the camera; arms akimbo, looking determined, her gaze locked into the distance. Watching her, the group laughs and shouts words of encouragement. The atmosphere is light and supportive. Yet, just five minutes later, one of the girls being photographed talks about the anxiety she feels whenever she posts photos of herself online. Deshani Dharmadasa says: I feel like everyone’s watching everything you’re doing. Even what you wear… it sends a message. It just adds to my anxiety. Groundviews interviewed a group of Sri Lankan women, including marketing executive Deshani Dharmadasa, who have been targeted online, often through vicious commentary on their appearance. The term “cyber-harassment” has varied definitions. The European Institute of Gender Equality steers clear of defining it noting that there are no accepted definitions they can point to. Recent surveys by Pew Research Center found that Americans were often divided over what constitutes online harassment — be it the public sharing of private messages or sending unkind messages. The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) has focused on the issue as it relates to violence against women. APC advocates for the recognition of harassment online as a component of violence against women as a whole because it impacts women offline as well. However, while speaking to the group a little further, another commonality emerges – each person has found their own way to cope and, when possible, push back against the hate they have received. Some use humour, others use direct confrontation. Dharmadasa, for instance, periodically posts screenshots of the unsolicited comments she receives on Facebook and Instagram – even with privacy settings enabled, she says she receives an average of 1 to 3 messages a week. Taking care to obscure their identities when posting, she often follows up by messaging them privately to take them to task for their behavior. Dharmadasa explains: I often tell them I have a brother and I would be ashamed if he treated and spoke about women the way they do. I want to try and make them think about the comments they post. Dharmadasa has never once received a response to the messages she sends. Image by Deshan Tennekoon. Via Groundviews However, Dharmadasa is honest about her own complicity; in the past, she used to laugh off these comments for fear of being branded humourless or bossy: “Don’t make the same mistake I did. Don’t stay silent,” she says. At the 2017 Lanka Comic Con event, young female cosplayers found themselves ridiculed and body-shamed, with photos from the event even used to make mocking memes that went viral. For the women and girls who participated in cosplay, the pushback came as a complete shock. Amaya Suriyapperuma initially didn’t know about the memes – her friends tried to hide it from her, as it was her birthday. However, she was taken aback by the viciousness when she did see them. Amaya had chosen to cosplay as Wonder Woman – many of them had said she was ‘too skinny’. Image by Deshan Tennekoon, via Groundviews. As a psychology student, Amaya found herself trying to analyse the meaning behind these comments: “My first question was, ‘Why would anyone want to do this?’ It could be a lack of self-esteem. Maybe they don’t have a platform to express themselves.” In addition, Amaya pointed out, cosplaying was relatively new to Sri Lanka. In the aftermath, Amaya found herself unexpectedly placed on a pedestal. Members of the Geek Club of Sri Lanka (who are also the organisers of the Lanka Comic Con event) banded together and reported some of the Facebook pages. One person tweeted a photo of her, tagging the Director of the Wonder Woman movie, Patty Jenkins, and actress Gal Gadot, who played Wonder Woman. Both retweeted the photos and expressed their support. For Amaya, this was overwhelming; some people then said she “thought she was Wonder Woman” and was just looking for her 15 minutes of fame. She began wondering if she really deserved the outpouring of support. A college class dealing with degrading memes was unexpectedly distressing. I suddenly realised… hey, this happened to me. Ultimately, Amaya reminded herself of why she enjoyed cosplay. It’s important to remember why you did it, and to know yourself too. That helps a lot when people criticise. Amaya had chosen to cosplay as a method of coping with ongoing struggles with anxiety and depression, while also paying tribute to her favourite characters.