#RageAgainstRape: World Englishes, Protest Signs, and Transnational Identity

This chapter builds on Chandra Mohanty’s later work, which suggests that “Third World” and “Western” feminists can create solidarity by examining the use of World English in feminists’ protests against sexual harassment and rape across the globe. Focusing specifically on Nepal’s “RageAgainstRape” movement and similar protests in other countries and continents, this chapter considers protest signs and placards written in Global English that allow women from very different contexts to identify with each other, and builds on Suresh Canagarajah’s theories of how people in non-dominant spaces can engage in semiotic reconstruction to adapt dominant languages for their individual needs. The chapter concludes that the examination of these Global English signs reveals two core functions of Global English: (1) the use of Global English makes signs relevant to multiple cultures, and (2) the use of Global English affirms common identities of women across cultures, thus marking the protesters as Global citizens who are together fighting for a better world.