Blog 2: Understanding Extremism and Violence in White America

In North American society, the involvement of men in violent extremism is a complex phenomenon. While only a small percentage of men actively participate in extremist activities, the majority of violent extremists are men, as highlighted by Aleksandra Dier and Gretchen Baldwin, human rights advisors and researchers affiliated with the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED). Dier and Baldwin’s research suggests that extremist groups often exploit feelings of emasculation and a perceived loss of power among men, capitalizing on misogynistic ideas of manhood to recruit followers. However, it’s crucial to understand that this sense of emasculation is often a reaction to various psychological, socioeconomic, and political factors, particularly in the context of right-wing extremism. Communities of emasculated men can often exploit feelings of emasculation and perceived powerlessness to maintain a toxic understanding of masculinity and misogyny against women. This essay aims to explore these themes by analyzing the documentaries Charlottesville: Race and Terror and Inside Incels (CBC), along with the article Masculinity as Homophobia by Michael Kimmel, to examine how emasculation is developed and propagated through online and offline spaces. This analysis will help us have a better understanding of the mechanisms driving white young males towards violence and extremism as a social issue. 

The CBC documentary ‘Inside Incels’ describes the depression, anxieties, and isolation of Incel members. Incels, otherwise known as ‘involuntary celibates’ usually have undergone a lot of bullying, harassment, and discrimination, and express how they have very negative experiences in approaching women. In the documentary, Dr. Ross Handler, a specialist in deviance and youth sub-culture, describes incels as yet another group of men engaged in a backlash against women, with their ‘mooring unglued’. This indicates they have failed to meet societal expectations of masculinity and success. Incels who feel they fall short of these expectations may withdraw from societal interactions, especially with women, and instead resort to connecting with like-minded peers who share similar negative experiences of rejection. These individuals try to create value in the solidarity of their negative experiences and try to create community within this environment, which usually takes place on online forums. For example, in ‘Inside Incels,’ men find solidarity online in their shared feelings of injustice and unfairness in their sexual treatment and reduced social status. The extreme psychological stress of this isolation and poor well-being would typically result in incidents of suicide or self-harm. However, in this situation, that same vulnerability is channelled into a defensiveness which employs violence and violent fantasies as a way to empower the masculine figure again. 

In online forums, disenfranchised white men reinforce and fuel toxic ideas of masculinity that are imbued with violence and misogyny because the space itself is closed and like an echo chamber, where like-minded individuals in the same online spaces keep confirming their biases on their mental state, their masculinity, and hostility towards other genders. In the ‘Charlottesville: Race and Terror’ (HBO) documentary, white supremacists join forces online to organize a massive protest in Charlottesville, USA. These supremacists emphasize how they are ‘organized’ and how they have the license to protest legally and express their political views and identities like everyone else. The affirmation and emphasis on their good organization and social structure offline runs counter to popular discourses that emasculate groups of socially scorned men by considering them unorganized and incoherent. When they’re shut down, this confirms their own biases about people of colour and entrenches them in one homogeneously thinking camp. This is representative of the extreme polarization of online and offline space occupied by emasculated white men. Popular political and media discourse encourages and proliferates this situation, and it is further affirmed by authority figures who use the same language. For example, following the Charlottesville protest and the violent killing of one protester by a supremacist, Donald Trump said: “We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides.” The language used both online and offline in describing and categorizing men trying to empower themselves is usually very one-sided and does not encourage conversation. The violence in the incel and supremacist community are very similar here. Violence is mythologized and justified through action because wherever it is expressed, it is done in perceived self-defence within a very biased space. 

The disproportionate impact of violent extremism misusing male identity on young white men can be attributed to several factors, which include reactions against left-wing politics and ideologies that are perceived as female-affirming or inclusive of marginalized groups such as feminism, LGBT rights, and racial equality movements like Black Lives Matter. In these instances, individuals who feel threatened by the progress of these movements may interpret them as challenges to their own status and identity. Michael Kimmel describes this emotional reaction as “aggrieved entitlement,” where those with power and privilege perceive advancements in equality and inclusiveness as a personal attack on their status. As a result, young white men may feel a sense of loss or threat to their traditional dominance in society, which leads to a reactionary embrace of ideologies that reinforce a narrow and often misogynistic understanding of male identity. In ‘Masculinity as Homophobia,’ Kimmel describes how “men’s lives are structured around relationships of power and men’s differential access to power, as well as the differential access to that power of men as a group.” (Kimmel 1994, 150). Within such a power framework that is present and affirmed within the political structures and daily lives of men, the constant need to exaggerate “all the traditional rules of masculinity” (Kimmel 1994, 148) is a vicious cycle where men’s disenfranchisement pushes men to disempower others as a way of regaining their own power. As Kimmel puts it: “Exclusion and escape have been the dominant methods American men have used to keep their fears of humiliation at bay.” This reactionary response, is rather a rejection of ideologies that do not affirm their perceived entitlement to power and privilege as white males.

In conclusion, analyzing the various documentaries and Michael Kimmel’s insights reveals a complex interaction of societal, psychological, and ideological factors contributing to the appeal of extremist ideologies among young white men in Western culture. The documentaries illustrate how feelings of emasculation and social isolation drive individuals towards extremist communities where toxic ideas of masculinity are reinforced and validated. Michael Kimmel’s concept of “aggrieved entitlement” further elucidates the emotional reactions of individuals who perceive advancements in equality as threats to their status and identity, which leads to a reactionary embrace of misogynistic and violent ideologies. More importantly, any secure gender identity in this situation is seen as ‘unmanly’ or threatening to masculinity. This understanding of emasculation as a consequence of uneven power structures is crucial for addressing the root causes of violent extremism and promoting empathy, dialogue, and social change. It highlights the need to challenge toxic notions of masculinity and privilege, as well as to create inclusive spaces where individuals feel empowered without resorting to violence or hatred. This is relevant because it sheds light on the mechanisms driving young white men towards extremism and offers insights into how to combat this pressing social issue, ultimately contributing to a more equitable and compassionate society for all.