Is Gender a Risk Factor for Radicalization?

On August 19, we ran an NGM Circle event to answer this question: what role, if any, does gender socialization play in radicalization? For us, there appears to be a strong and clear link.

By Blake H.

The numbers speak for themselves:

  • 94% of mass shootings in the US are carried out by men.

  • 134 out of 135 far-right attacks in US carried out by men.

  • Over 90% of suicide bombings and terrorist attacks have been committed by men.

However, these numbers only tell us part of the story.

Terror attacks are not a perfect representation of radicalization as it is only a measure of one type of violence. It also says nothing about who supported and possibly encouraged those acts. 

Yet it is clear that the intersection of patriarchal masculinity and radicalized ideologies has the devastating potential to lead to extreme violence. 

Increasingly, members of groups that identify as so-called ‘incels’ (involuntary celibates) have been responsible for violent attacks that have killed and injured many people. So-called ‘incels’ are responsible for at least seven mass shootings in North America as of 2019. 

The ‘incel’ ideology, in brief, sees women as inferior people who should provide sexually for males and that feminism has wrongfully allowed women to exert power over men. They believe women to be inherently shallow and thus they use their power of choice to deny sex and relationships to ‘ugly’ men—thus wounding their masculine pride in the process. 

The recent Atlanta terror attack committed by a so-called ‘incel’ highlights how the movement is susceptible to other hateful ideas like racism and homophobia. Self-reporting indicates that 86% of members of ‘incel’ communities identify as male. 

Is gender a risk factor for radicalization?

This question underscored the discussions we had during our NGM Circle event on August 19.

Younger attendees answered yes. Absolutely.

Many, myself included, felt that our lifepaths and beliefs as an adolescent at least partially overlapped with that of those who went on to be incels or followers of other extreme ideologies. 

The reasons varied from the isolation of teenage social awkwardness to the hyper-competitive environment of sports where sexual prowess earned the respect of peers. The common theme was that this led to feelings of self-hatred. 

Another attendee pointed out though, that these things, hyper-masculine environments and isolation are not new, yet when he was growing up, ‘incels’ didn’t exist.  Were these ideologies always hiding below the surface or did something change?

A group consensus emerged that the internet and the chance to create large, insular communities regardless of geographic area, is at least in part, to blame. This is, of course not always a bad thing but in extreme situations, it can bypass the moderating influences of one’s physical community. 

My own research in preparing for this event has led me to believe that accelerated social change is another factor. 

A recurring theme in all radicalized people was a need to fit in, in response to a crisis of identity.

Now as a pro-feminist organization, we at Next Gen Men believe that a society moving towards equality is an inherently good thing. 

Yet, all forms of change will be met with resistance, especially from those who feel that they are either losing out as a result, or who believe they have been miscast as an offender in the current social make-up. 

This zero-sum mentality is easily pushed on those who are vulnerable, those who may be feeling isolated or unworthy, and then can be used to push a simplistic picture of victims (the ‘us’) and villains (the ‘other’). 

This worldview, completely lacking in nuance, is unfounded—but for those who buy in, violence is a way of reclaiming what is perceived as being taken away. In the case of ‘incels,’ they believe this to be their masculinity. This leads to the entitlement they feel for love, sex, and the attention that they believe they are ‘owed.’

For all that, there is hope. 

For us who felt that we were once a few bad decisions away from eventually being radicalized, someone in our lives, or our community as a whole, steered us in a more positive direction.

This was done either by providing a safe space for us to air our insecurities or by validating other sources of self-worth. 

We also have proven ways to lower societal risks of radicalization: encouraging multi-faith initiatives, increasing access to health-care including mental health, investing in poverty alleviating policies, de-platforming high-profile habitual spreaders of misinformation, and finally by engaging with groups and discussions like this one to increase acceptance of more positive forms of masculinity.

Hope to see you at the next NGM Circle event! Join our mailing list to keep up to date!

Additional Resources

ReflectionsNext Gen Men AdminRadicalization, Masculinity