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Beta Uprising

Author(s): Jacob Ware


Source: Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses , March 2021, Vol. 13, No. 2 (March 2021),
pp. 10-15
Published by: International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/27016616

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Beta Uprising: Is there an Incel Threat to Asia?

Beta Uprising: Is there an Incel Threat to


Asia?
Jacob Ware
Synopsis dangers of ignoring the community and its
potential for violence.
In recent years, increasing attention has been
paid in Western countries to the “incel” This article argues that the incel terrorism
movement. Taking their name from a threat, though perhaps intensifying in North
portmanteau for “involuntary celibate”, incels America and Europe, remains contained in
have been responsible for several violent Asia. However, there are sufficient warning
attacks across the United States and Canada signs of an escalation in far-right and so-called
since 2014, leading to rising calls for “manosphere” violence, a potential danger
counterterrorism measures to be that security services should at least be aware
implemented against the community. The of. The article first analyses incel ideology and
incel movement is ideologically malleable, traces the history of the movement, before
reflecting several themes more naturally seen assessing its applicability in Asia. The article
amongst elements of the far-right, and it has then also unpacks incels’ reaction to the
adapted to - and likely strengthened from - the COVID-19 pandemic, before concluding by
ongoing coronavirus pandemic. For now, the evaluating the long-term implications of the
threat to Asia remains limited, but security threat.
services should be on guard against the
ideology’s potential attractiveness to the What Are “Incels”?
young male Asian population.1
The term “involuntary celibate” was first
Introduction coined in the 1990s, after a Canadian woman
established an online support community for
In November 2020, as the COVID-19 those struggling for romance.3 Early members
pandemic reached new, devastating heights, recall the first communities fondly, as “a
the media in Toronto, Canada was consumed welcoming place, one where men who didn’t
with the trial of Alek Minassian, perpetrator of know how to talk to women could ask the
a car ramming attack nearly three years community’s female members for advice (and
earlier that claimed 10 lives on one of the city’s vice versa).”4 In the decades since, however,
busiest streets.2 A Facebook post discovered the initial purpose has been steadily eroded,
shortly after the attack revealed that and the term, as well as its portmanteau
Minassian was a member of the so-called “incel,” has been increasingly hijacked by a
“incel” community - a largely online group of community of young men frustrated by their
males who rail against sexually promiscuous inability to find sexual partners. By 2018, the
men and women, while lamenting their own incel movement had grown to tens of
perceived biological, social and sexual thousands of followers on internet forums, and
shortcomings. Minassian was the tip of the rhetoric on the sites had grown increasingly
spear of the small fraction of incels that have misogynistic, sexualized, and violent.5
turned violent - a terrifying case study of the
1 The author thanks Yebin Won for reviewing an https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/05/08/
earlier version of this article. intel-involuntary-celibate-movement-218324/.
2 See, for example, Liam Caset, “Alek Minassian van 4 Zack Beauchamp, “Our incel problem,” Vox, April

attack motivated by fear of new job, court hears,” 23, 2019.


5 Justin Ling, Jill Mahoney, Patrick McGuire, and
Global News, November 19, 2020,
Colin Freeze, “The ‘incel’ community and the dark
https://globalnews.ca/news/7471810/psychiatrist- side of the internet,” Globe and Mail, April 24, 2018,
testimony-toronto-van-attack-trial/. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-
the-incel-community-and-the-dark-side-of-the-
3Ben Zimmer, “How ‘Incel’ Got Hijacked,” Politico,
internet/.
May 8, 2018,

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Beta Uprising: Is there an Incel Threat to Asia?

Modern incel ideology centers on the punishable - crime.”11 Therein lies the
“blackpill” theory, essentially the “acceptance” involuntary celibate political ideology: Incels
that society is “fixed” against incels due to perceive themselves as sexual Marxists of an
perceived genetic inferiorities such as facial oppressed social class, and “if the root of the
features. Incels believe they are unable to problem is an unfair social system, then there
overcome those disadvantages, leaving them needs to be a revolution to change it.”12
rooted to the bottom rung of society.6 Once
they have accepted the “blackpill,” incels The dehumanising of women, as well as other
primarily rage against “Chads” and “Stacys,” races, ties the incel movement to the
who represent youthful sexual promiscuity. emerging far-right. Interracial relationships -
“Chads” are conventionally attractive, indeed, race-mixing more broadly - are for
muscular men who keep all the “Stacys” to instance an important grievance. Forum
themselves, while “Stacys” are conventionally posters often share news stories of interracial
attractive young women who give all their relationships around the world, highlighting
attention to “Chads” and ignore those them as evidence both that women are
subsequently left as involuntarily celibate. incapable of making their own choices and
Incels, in turn, sometimes refer to themselves that other ethnicities are inferior, even to
as “beta males,” if not even further down the “blackpilled” incels. For instance, after a white
societal ladder.7 Incels are part of the broader Canadian woman was murdered by her
“manosphere” - an online conglomeration of Muslim boyfriend in July 2018, an incel thread
various often-violently misogynistic extremist blamed the woman for her death, on the basis
movements, all advocating varying degrees of that she “could not resist fucking a muslim
male supremacism.8 [sic].”13 The links between the incel movement
and America’s resurgent alt-right has been
The dehumanising of women is a key tenet of reflected in the incel movement’s terrorists,
the incel ideology. In April 2019, an incels.co with the Southern Poverty Law Center even
member posted - in a forum titled “if you could describing Rodger as the first “alt-right killer,”
design your perfect society, how would you largely due to his thoroughly racist
deal with women?” - that women should “be manifesto.14
property of men they [sic] would be used to
breed until they age to the point where they At one point, lamenting an African-American
can no longer reproduce at which point they acquaintance’s sexual prowess, Rodger said
will be put to death.”9 The movement’s most “how could an inferior, ugly black boy be able
notorious member, Elliot Rodger, similarly to get a white girl and not me? I am beautiful,
noted in his manifesto that “[women] are and I am half white myself. I am descended
beasts,” and that “beasts should not be able from British aristocracy. He is descended from
to have any rights in a civilized society.”10 slaves.”15 Incel online forums are also rife with
According to the Southern Poverty Law racist language. Asian and Indian incels are
Center, “to an incel, sex is a basic human right referred to openly as “ricecels” and
for all men.” By this token, “women who deny “currycels,”16 and Asian women are often
them that right are committing a heinous - and

6 Beauchamp, “Our incel problem.” 11 Rachel Janik, “‘I laugh at the death of normies’:
7 Zack Beauchamp, “Incel, the misogynist ideology How incels are celebrating the Toronto mass killing,”
that inspired the deadly Toronto attack, explained,” Southern Poverty Law Center, April 24, 2018,
Vox, April 25, 2018, https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2018/04/24/i-
https://www.vox.com/world/2018/4/25/17277496/ince laugh-death-normies-how-incels-are-celebrating-
l-toronto-attack-alek-minassian. toronto-mass-killing.
8 Manoel Horta Ribeiro, Jeremy Blackburn, Barry 12 Beauchamp, “Incel.”

Bradlyn, Emiliano De Cristofaro, Gianluca Stringhini, 13 “This is what a Muslim can get in Canada,”

Summer Long, Stephanie Greenberg, and Savvas Incels.co, July 23 2018, accessed April 12, 2019.
Zannettou, “From Pick-Up Artists to Incels: A Data- 14 Keegan Hankes and Alex Amend, “The Alt-Right is

Driven Sketch of the Manosphere,” arXiv, January Killing People,” Southern Poverty Law Center,
21, 2020. February 5, 2018,
9 “If you could design your perfect society, how https://www.splcenter.org/20180205/alt-right-killing-
would you deal with women?,” Incels.co, April 12, people.
2019, accessed April 12, 2019. 15 Rodger, My Twisted World, 84.
10 Elliot Rodger, My Twisted World: The Story of 16 “Gender Ratio Gap in China/India,” Incels.co,

Elliot Rodger (2014), p 117. March 20, 2019, accessed April 12, 2019.

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Beta Uprising: Is there an Incel Threat to Asia?

derided as “noodlewhores.”17 In fact, it is no to include incel violence) dominating.21


accident that incel rhetoric is so laced with However, incel terrorist attacks have typically
racist symbolism. The rapprochement been rather deadly compared to other forms
between incels and the white supremacist of extremism. The three most obvious acts of
movement has been strategically and incel “terrorism” - Elliot Rodger’s attack at Isla
deliberately pursued by the far-right through Vista, Alek Minassian’s Toronto rampage, and
overlapping forums, and for many, “the a 2018 shooting at a Florida yoga studio -
gateway drug that led them to join the alt-right averaged six fatalities.22
in the first place wasn’t racist rhetoric but
rather sexism: extreme misogyny evolving Incels in Asia?
from male bonding gone haywire.”18
Over the past few years, there has been
Fringes of the incel movement have mobilised increasing attention paid to the spread of
to real world violence, and to date, North Western extremisms into Asia. In one recent
American incels have committed at least eight assessment, terrorism scholar Kumar
confirmed attacks of varying levels of direct Ramakrishna concluded that “[white
political motivation, resulting in almost 50 supremacist terrorism] could be assessed as
deaths.19 The most notable incidents are a limited threat to Asia – for now,” while
Rodger’s 2014 assault on the streets of Isla admitting that other factions of the far-right
Vista, California, which killed six individuals, have been evidently active.23 In January 2021,
and Minassian’s aforementioned rampage a Singaporean 16-year-old was arrested for
along Toronto’s busy Yonge Street in 2018. plotting an attack modeled on Brenton
Perhaps most concerningly, incidents of incel Tarrant’s twin attacks at Christchurch, New
violence seemingly increased in 2020 - with at Zealand mosques in 2019.24 The arrest
least three significant incidents in North prompted one expert to predict that
America in just the first half of the year.20 Most Singapore’s authorities would now implement
notoriously, an incel, claiming to target “measures to prevent ‘alt-right’ thinking, or
couples and wanting to kill 10 victims, reciprocal radicalisation of the type seen in the
attacked a mall in Glendale, Arizona, in May West, from taking root.”25
2020. Three were injured. A Toronto teen who
stabbed a woman to death that February was Other analysts have more narrowly debated
charged with a terrorism offense for his incel- the possibility of the rise of Asian inceldom,
inspired attack, and in June 2020, a Virginian arguing that the international reach of online
incel was injured while attempting to construct forums and pervasiveness of misogyny
an explosive device. means “an Asian incel network could find a
receptive audience, not only among the youth,
Incels have been responsible for a relatively but among older age groups raised under
small percentage of terrorist attacks in North
America over the past several years, with far-
right terrorism (which some analysts consider

17 Beauchamp, “Our incel problem.” 22 Hoffman, Ware, and Shapiro, “Assessing the
18 Aja Romano, “How the alt-right’s sexism lures men Threat of Incel Violence.”
into white supremacy,” Vox, April 26, 2018, 23 Kumar Ramakrishna, “The White Supremacist

https://www.vox.com/culture/2016/12/14/13576192/a Terrorist Threat to Asia: A Preliminary Assessment,”


lt-right-sexism-recruitment. Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses 12, no. 4
19 For a list of attacks, see Bruce Hoffman, Jacob (June 2020): 7,
Ware, and Ezra Shapiro, “Assessing the Threat of https://www.jstor.org/stable/26918075?seq=1#metad
Incel Violence,” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 43, ata_info_tab_contents.
no. 7 (2020): 565-587. 24 Aqil Haziq Mahmud, “16-year-old Singaporean
20 For incidents in 2020, see Jon Lewis and Jacob detained under ISA after planning to attack Muslims
Ware, “Spring Provides Timely Reminder of Incel at 2 mosques,” Channel News Asia, January 27,
Violence—And Clarifies How to Respond,” 2021,
International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/1
Hague, August 28, 2020. 6-year-old-singaporean-detained-isa-planned-attack-
21 See Seth G. Jones, Catrina Doxsee, and Nicholas 2-mosques-14052400.
Harrington, “The War Comes Home: The Evolution 25 Shashi Jayakumar, “Singapore: The Lure of the

of Domestic Terrorism in the United States,” Center Far-Right,” Global Network on Extremism &
for Strategic and International Studies, October 22, Technology, February 2, 2021.
2020.

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Beta Uprising: Is there an Incel Threat to Asia?

more patriarchal norms.”26 It is also important perpetrator of the March 2019 mosque
to note that many incels are non-white, shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand,
undermining the white supremacist meanwhile, had frequented forums and sites
undertones inherent in the ideology. Elliot popular with incels, and at the very least
Rodger, despite his boastful claim “to have moved in the same online circles.32 And the
descended from British aristocracy,” was half- perpetrator of the October 2019 shooting at a
Malaysian, and Alek Minassian, the deadliest synagogue in Halle, Germany, had embraced
attacker to date, is of Armenian and Iranian incel language, and may have been at least
descent. Black and Latino incel-related partially driven by the more personal
attackers, meanwhile, have opened fire in frustrations reflected within the incel
schools and universities in the United States27 community.33 In the United Kingdom,
- not to mention Virginia Tech shooter Seung- meanwhile, authorities succeeded in 2019
Hui Cho, a South Korea-born gunman who and 2020 in disrupting two plots of would-be
perpetrated one of the deadliest mass incel terrorists seemingly of Asian origin or
shootings in U.S. history, and who incels ethnicity.34 One of them, a 22-year-old who
frequently applaud as an ideological was born in Indonesia but spent most of his
ancestor.28 Echoing the concerns of other life in Singapore, had stabbed a police officer
scholars, Raffaello Pantucci and Kyler Ong in an earlier incident, hoping to commit
have also argued that “male anger is an issue “suicide by cop.”
in Asia which might ultimately start to see Incel
ideas as meshing with their broader rage and In Asia, there is additionally a rising presence
even present a useful outlet. Violence could of “manosphere” networks not necessarily
be the result.”29 linked directly to incels. In South Korea, for
instance, the social networking site Ilbe has
There is also already evidence suggesting allowed extreme anti-feminism to flourish
that the incel movement is globalising. Incel online, prompting public debates over the
forums display surprising internationalism, merits and legality of content moderation and
with contributors, and the topics they discuss, deplatforming.35 And the recent Nth Room
spanning an array of nationalities.30 Further, case, a digital sex crime operation run on
several major attacks outside North America Telegram, rocked South Korea in 2020,
have been linked, albeit indirectly, with the offering another painful reminder of the
community. In July 2016, for instance, an 18- toxicity and danger of male supremacism and
year-old far-right fanatic killed 10 people, its prevalence on social media.36 Both provide
including himself, in a shooting in Munich, early, pressing warning signs that law
Germany. He had been part of an online enforcement and politicians should not
community which included incels.31 The ignore.37

26 Joseph Franco, “Preempting Incel-Inspired Violent 32 Phil Brandel, “‘I joined an incel group and what I
Extremism in Asia,” Australian Institute of found was surprising,’” News.com.au, March 19,
International Affairs, July 30, 2020. 2019.
27 Hoffman, Ware, and Shapiro, “Assessing the 33 Daniel Koehler, “The Halle, Germany, Synagogue

Threat of Incel Violence.” Attack and the Evolution of the Far-Right Terror
28 Robyn Pennacchia, “‘Beta Males’ Want To Kill Threat,” CTC Sentinel, 12, no. 11 (December 2019):
Women Because They Can’t Get Laid,” Bust, 2016, 16.
https://bust.com/feminism/15551-beta-males-want- 34 See “Middlesbrough fantasist Anwar Driouich

to-kill-women-because-they-can-t-get-laid.html. jailed for explosive substance,” BBC, March 27,


29 Raffaello Pantucci and Kyler Ong, “Incels and 2020; and “Man on terrorism charges claims he
Terrorism: Sexual Deprivation As Security Threat,” wanted to ‘commit suicide by cop,’” Herald,
RSIS Commentary No. 176, October 6, 2020, December 11, 2020.
https://www.rsis.edu.sg/wp- 35 See Kelly Kasulis, “Inside Ilbe: How South Korea’s

content/uploads/2020/10/CO20176.pdf. angry young men formed a powerful new alt-right


30 See, for example, “In Eastern Europe to get laid movement,” Mic, September 18, 2017; and Jo He-
you need a social circle,” Incels.co, March 19, 2019, rim, “Blue House says possible to shut down far-right
accessed April 12, 2019; “Women living in Japan website Ilbe,” Korea Herald, March 26, 2018.
discuss Height in dating,” Incels.co, September 26, 36 Nicole de Souza, “The Nth Room case and

2018, accessed April 12, 2019; and “This is what a modern slavery in the digital space,” Lowy Institute,
Muslim can get in Canada,” Incels.co, July 23 2018, April 20, 2020, https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-
accessed April 12, 2019. interpreter/nth-room-case-and-modern-slavery-
31 Martin Bernstein, “Das Netzwerk der digital-space.
Todesschützen,” Süddeutsche Zeitung, May 15, 37 Erika Nguyen, “South Korea Online Sexual Abuse

2018. Case Illustrates Gaps in Government Response,”

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Beta Uprising: Is there an Incel Threat to Asia?

are controlled by factors outside one’s own


In a New York Times article discussing the control. COVID-19, then, is seen as just
Christchurch attack and appropriately titled “a another unconquerable assault on incels and
mass murder of, and for, the internet,” Kevin their existence; only this time, it also affects
Roose describes how “people become fluent the lives of those who incels usually assume
in the culture of online extremism, they make to be happy, carefree, and sexually
and consume edgy memes, they cluster and promiscuous.41 However, there are also those
harden. And once in a while, one of them who fear the return to normality. “Vaccines
erupts.”38 That description could apply to any coming soon, sadly,” one November 2020
incel attack, and helps explain why the threat poster lamented. “Now I won’t have a good
now transcends borders. Analysis of incels reason to lie to myself why being in my room
has centered on the United States and all day is okay.”42
Canada because North America has suffered
the most devastating violence. But, the so- It is also worth noting that the current global
called “incel rebellion” is clearly an predicament lends itself directly to
increasingly global movement. And if incel radicalisation - record numbers of young
rhetoric is to be believed, the threat could people spending an unprecedented amount of
intensify, with more attacks to come. time online, away from real-world friends,
often with little-to-no parental supervision, in
Incels and COVID-19 an age of great political polarisation and
disinformation.43 Coupled with that comes the
There is little doubt the coronavirus crisis has reality that extremism is growing increasingly
significantly altered the threat landscape as it international, with so-called “domestic
concerns incels. Developments can relatively terrorism” increasingly crossing borders, and
neatly be classified in three categories: how radical ideologies rapidly spreading through
incels have reacted to the pandemic, how the common marketplace of ideas provided by
incels will benefit or suffer from the pandemic, social media.44 The incel community exists
and how the incel movement will impact the almost entirely online, which enhances the
post-pandemic world. prospect of pandemic lockdowns contributing
to a significant rise in popularity for virtual
The reaction of incels to the pandemic has extremist networks. The challenging living
been, generally, welcoming. Reactions range conditions brought on by the pandemic only
from hoping the virus kills sexually successful intensify the lifestyles already lived by many
people - “Corona must be on our side since it incels.
will probably kill chads and rosties the most,
since they can’t stop partying and having sex In the same vein, the reopening period, which
with strangers”39 - to just happiness that so- will vary from country to country, will be rife
called “normies,” like incels, are karmically with dangers, with pandemic-related stressors
now stuck at home, with no romantic possibly leading to violence. In the most
prospects.40 In one article, scholar Sara serious incel-related incident of 2020,
Brzuszkiewicz sees the coronavirus as fitting Armando Hernandez opened fire at Westgate
neatly into the incels’ “external locus of Entertainment District in Arizona after
control” - the belief that one’s life and fortunes becoming enraged at an AMC theater being

Human Rights Watch, March 26, 2020, International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The
https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/03/26/south-korea- Hague (ICCT) Evolutions in Counter-Terrorism, Vol.
online-sexual-abuse-case-illustrates-gaps- 2 (November 2020): 14.
government-response. 42 “Ngl corona virus is pretty fucking based,”
38 Kevin Roose, “A Mass Murder of, and for, the Incels.co, November 30, 2020, accessed December
Internet,” New York Times, March 15, 2019, 1, 2020.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/15/technology/fac 43 Eric Rosand, Khalid Koser, and Lilla Schumicky-

ebook-youtube-christchurch-shooting.html. Logan, “Preventing violent extremism during and


39 Anh V. Vu, “The Pandemic as Incels see it,” after the COVID-19 pandemic,” Brookings Institution,
Cambridge Cybercrime Centre COVID Briefing April 28, 2020.
Paper #5, August 4, 2020. 44 Bruce Hoffman and Jacob Ware, “The Challenges
40 Sarah Manavis, “Incels are celebrating lockdown of Effective Counterterrorism Intelligence in the
because attractive people can’t have casual sex,” 2020s,” Lawfare, June 21, 2020,
New Statesman, March 24, 2020. https://www.lawfareblog.com/challenges-effective-
41 Sara Brzuszkiewicz,, “Incel Radical Milieu and counterterrorism-intelligence-2020s.
External Locus of Control,” The

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Beta Uprising: Is there an Incel Threat to Asia?

closed.45 His attack targeted couples at the online “manosphere,” which is increasingly
mall. Frustration at shutdowns - as well as turning to terroristic violence to spread its
anger at “normies” during the return to message and seek revenge for perceived
normality -will provide new dangers. Indeed, wrongdoings. For now, it remains a fringe
one team of scholars at the University of threat, isolated to the West - but Asian law
Cambridge noticed “a significant increase in enforcement and intelligence agencies should
murderous fantasies during the pandemic.”46 be aware of the movement, its ideological and
Law enforcement and intelligence agencies geographical trends, and the possibility for
must exercise extra vigilance to ensure those violence. Governments, including those in
fantasies are not acted upon in the coming Southeast Asia, can take steps towards
months. countering online extremism by encouraging
tech companies to take more responsibility for
There have always been sexually frustrated harmful content online, and by helping protect
and alienated young men around the world, young people from radicalisation by
but the internet has revolutionised their ability encouraging internet literacy and easy access
to coalesce and mobilise - the internet has to mental health resources, both online and
highlighted their grievances, and brought offline.
them closer together.47 And now, the
pandemic has only strengthened many of
those grievances, and multiplied the time the About the author
believers spend in virtual interaction. That is a
dangerous mix, and governments around the Jacob Ware is a Research Associate for
world should be on alert. Counterterrorism at the Council on Foreign
Relations and a graduate of Georgetown
Conclusion University’s Security Studies Program and the
University of St Andrews.
While the threat to Asia seemingly remains
limited for now, some incels have ambitions,
at the very least, of a global revolution. “Do
you mean like an incel caliphate?” one forum
user pondered, responding to an August 2018
thread debating a possible incel revolution. He
added: “Like instead of ISIS it will be incels
who make terror attacks all around the world?
If so, then i think it has already begun and it
will be more powerful in Future [sic].”48
Similarly, a November 2018 thread titled “This
world needs to be cleansed” featured a
commenter noting that “I’d rather live in a
dystopia that [sic] what we have now. Human
society & western culture needs to be
destroyed and then rebuilt or reset.”49 If
aspects of the incel community’s rhetoric is to
be believed, there are darker days ahead in
the efforts to combat incel violence.

The involuntary celibate movement has


metastasized from a small online support
system to a substantial subculture of the
45 Joshua Bowling and Perry Vandell, “Westgate Community of Celibate Men,” Glamour, April 26,
shooting: Who is Armando Hernandez Jr.?” Arizona 2018.
Republic, May 23, 2020, 48 “When do you think the beta uprising shall

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/glendale/ commence?” Incels.co, August 1, 2018, accessed


2020/05/23/westgate-shooting-who-armando- April 13, 2019.
hernandez-jr/5237382002/. 49 “This world needs to be cleansed,” Incels.co,
46 Vu, “The Pandemic as Incels see it.” November 19, 2018, accessed April 13, 2019.
47 Perrie Samotin and Lilly Dancyger, “Incels:

Breaking Down the Disturbing, Thriving Online

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