Citation

Wilson C. Terrorism Polit. Violence 2022; 34(8): 1810-1825.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/09546553.2020.1839428

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Western countries are experiencing a wave of violent attacks against places of worship, stores, schools and other crowded locations. The perpetrators of these attacks explain their actions as necessary to stem an "invasion" of immigrants which threatens the very existence of the white race. At the same time, many of the same countries have experienced very similar attacks motivated by a particularly contemporary form of misogyny. Known as incels, an abbreviation of involuntary celibate, young men in this community believe they are denied sexual partners by feminism and societal norms of male attractiveness. These two series of attacks are generally understood to be separate (if overlapping) forms of extremism. In this article I contend that the concepts of white genocide central to white nationalism and misogynistic incelism are more intertwined than it appears. Misogyny and the notion of white genocide are mutually escalatory. Rather than separate and complementary forms of extremism, the two ideologies converge to create a single more volatile worldview, one which makes its proponents more prone to the use of violence. Misogyny and white genocide are synergistic, their effect greater than the sum of their parts.

Language: en

Keywords

incels; misogyny; terrorism; White genocide; white nationalism