incel

incel, member of an online subculture of primarily heterosexual men who identify as being unable to have romantic or sexual relationships. This self-described inability to form attachments is often expressed as grievance toward women. Incel subculture has been associated with misogyny, extremism, rape culture, and expressions and acts of violence.

Incels are a subset of the “manosphere,” which includes other online communities animated by sexism and hostility toward women, such as pickup artists, Men Going Their Own Way (MGTOW), and men’s rights activists. The Southern Poverty Law Center classifies incels as a hate group and identifies them as part of the online male supremacist ecosystem.

Etymology and historical use

The term incel was initially coined by a woman. Known only by her first name, a Canadian woman named Alana began using the term invcel (later shortened to incel) in 1997 to connect with other singles struggling with social awkwardness. She documented her experiences on her personal website, “Alana’s Involuntary Celibacy Project,” which became a forum for people struggling to form romantic relationships. In 2000 Alana stopped participating in the project, and she has since said that she feels uncomfortable with how the term has been hijacked.

As incel communities began to establish themselves on the forum-based websites Reddit and 4chan, the term shifted from its initial meaning. By 2010 incel was associated with misogynistic trolling and threats of violence by men’s rights groups operating on fringe right-wing platforms. In 2017 Reddit banned a particularly active subreddit called r/incels for violating Reddit’s rule against content that “encourages, glorifies, incites, or calls for violence or physical harm against an individual or group of people.”

Incel ideology and terminology

Online incel communities are often dominated by expressions of misogyny and misanthropy from primarily white heterosexual men. Incel ideology is based on the belief that men, especially white men, are entitled to sex and that feminism and women’s liberation have thwarted them in establishing successful romantic or sexual relationships. Part of the incel identity relies on its adherents’ understanding of themselves as “beta” males who are rejected not only because of their social awkwardness but because of biological determinism (e.g., inherent genetic disadvantage) and women’s cruel superficiality.

Some common terminology used by the incel community highlights this belief system, including the concept of hypergamy, in which a woman uses sexual or romantic relationships to elevate her social or financial status. Terms such as femoid or roastie are also used among incels to objectify and dehumanize women. Incels often allude to the so-called 80/20 rule (also called the Pareto principle), which describes the idea that 80 percent of women (“Stacys”) want to date only the top 20 percent (in terms of attractiveness and wealth) of men (“Chads” or “alpha males”).

Being “blackpilled” is a central concept within the incel worldview. The term refers to the red pill/blue pill dilemma about accepting the true nature of reality from the popular movie The Matrix (1999). An incel that has been blackpilled accepts a nihilistic belief that no matter what he does, he is doomed to rejection. This belief is associated with higher instances of self-harm or suicidal ideation among incels and was popularized by the Omega Virgin Revolt website.

Studies indicate that incels struggle with mental health issues but may be discouraged from seeking professional help. Researchers have found that 75 percent of incels could be clinically diagnosable with severe or moderate depression, and as many as 45 percent may have severe anxiety.

Incel-associated extremism and violence

In 2022 the U.S. Secret Service’s National Threat Assessment Center characterized incels as a growing terrorism threat, issuing a report on violence associated with the manosphere. The following high-profile attacks that occurred in North America were perpetrated by self-identified incels or active members of the incel community or are considered to have been inspired by incel ideologies.

• August 2009—George Sodini, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Sodini shot and killed three women and wounded nine attending an aerobics class at an LA Fitness outside Pittsburgh. Eight months before the shooting he wrote on his blog that he had been rejected by 30 million women during his lifetime. Subsequent acts of violence by incels are sometimes referred to as “going Sodini.”
• May 2014—Elliot Rodger, Isla Vista, California: Rodger, who killed six people and wounded more than a dozen before taking his own life, detailed his motivations in an online manifesto that expressed profound anger toward women as a result of sexual rejection. Rodger is celebrated in incel communities, where he is referred to as the “Supreme Gentleman.”
• April 2018—Alek Minassian, Toronto, Canada: Minassian used a van to ram into people on a Toronto sidewalk, killing 10 and injuring at least 16. His social media channels reflected admiration for Rodger, and Minassian stated that he hoped his attack would inspire further violence.
• November 2018—Scott Paul Beierle, Tallahassee, Florida: Before shooting six women at a hot yoga studio, two of whom died, Beierle created online content depicting graphic violence against women and had a documented history of sexual harassment.

After experts began raising the alarm about the threats posed by incel communities, attacks have been thwarted by U.S. and Canadian law enforcement. Analysis of the incel movement across various platforms such as TikTok and YouTube indicates that violent, misogynistic rhetoric continues to be common, with a thousand or more references noted daily.

Some terrorism researchers have argued that male supremacy ideologies tend to be understudied in favor of focusing on white supremacist and anti-government ideologies. According to the researchers, this may be detrimental to studies of terrorism and could present an incomplete picture of extremist violence and threat assessment.