Abstract:  We develop “moralized misogyny” as an analytic concept for examining how Meta’s Facebook functions as a form of informal patriarchal governance regulating Bangladeshi women’s political visibility. Drawing on theories of misogyny, morally motivated networked harassment, and digital vigilantism, we argue that women’s political engagement is disciplined and exposure enforces dominant moral norms. Integrating feminist and multimodal approaches to critical discourse analysis of purposively sampled Facebook items, we show how political disagreement is reframed as moral transgression. Women’s participation is recoded as sexual deviance and impurity through visual and textual manipulation that render delegitimizing attacks credible, humorous, and socially acceptable. Whether audiences believe these artifacts is often secondary; their circulation enables crowd-led vigilante punishment framed as moral defense. This dynamic can constitute a form of structural equality harm that makes women’s political citizenship conditional on compliance with patriarchal norms. We recommend context-specific moderation and policy responses that recognize such attacks as a barrier to women’s political participation.

Keywords:  Bangladesh; digital vigilantism; Facebook; online misogyny; patriarchy; women in politics

Published:   26 May 2026

Issue:   Vol 14 (2026): Gender Politics and Moral Norms Across Media (In Progress)