Social media has the unique ability to foster online communities and spread information at lightning speeds. On Instagram, it is common to find like-minded people and develop long-standing friendships despite distances and cultural differences. On X, formerly known as Twitter, users contribute their thoughts and opinions on breaking news stories and pop culture as it happens. But, when the power of social media is abused and channeled to create violence, the online world becomes a danger to those who are not a part of it.
The ‘manosphere’ is one of the many niches on the internet that has developed a large following of ideologically similar people. This digital community apparently seeks to offer self-help advice to men struggling with their identities but instead enacts both casual and extreme violence upon women. Here, figures like Andrew Tate, the American-British media personality who was arrested and charged in Romania for rape and sex trafficking, are praised as heroes and considered the peak of masculinity. His jet-set lifestyle and backward views about women have promoted him to an almost god-like status amongst this group because his masculinity is so deeply rooted in traditional male values.
Despite his criminal history and removal from several social media platforms, Tate remains an important figure to men who may be “red-pilled” or in other words, exposed to extremist beliefs because of online activity. They believe that men need to reclaim their role as ‘protectors’ and ‘providers’ within society and therefore deserve respect and devotion from all women at the expense of their personal identities and achievements.
It is not that all men who are involved with this dark, online world are inherently misogynists, but their media consumption has led them down extremist paths. Perhaps YouTube recommended a video posted by Ben Shapiro or the TikTok algorithm was showing compilations of men talking about women’s bodies as though they were pieces of meat. These algorithms are dangerous and can especially target and prey upon young men who don’t have much experience talking to women thus allowing them to believe that misogyny is okay. While it’s both important and necessary to understand the role that media and algorithms play in the normalization of misogyny, the behavior of these men cannot be excused. The thoughts held by these people have the potential to cause real harm and must therefore be called out as soon as they are observed.
The manosphere’s desire to return to traditional gender roles and acceptable misogyny seems to be born from anxieties about decentralization. For so long, they have had the power to do and say as they wish without compromise or backlash but that has been changing considerably over the past few decades, which is unmooring their masculinity. According to Tate’s ideology, if you don’t have a woman to dominate then you are not a high-value man. In this online world, it is thought that women are always to submit to the wants of men and if they don’t, they can be made to by any means necessary thus allowing violent misogyny to run rampant.
While these ideas are spread through digital channels, they often have tragic and real-world consequences. Just this past month on Sep. 28 in South London, a 15-year-old girl was stabbed to death at a bus stop because she had rejected a boy who was trying to give her flowers. She didn’t belittle or pester him about the act, she merely refused his advance which is what ultimately led to her untimely death. This boy, a believer in outdated traditionalism and violent misogyny, senselessly killed a girl because she had acted in her own self-interests instead of his.
So many women and femme presenting people all over the world share the fear of upsetting a man or oppressor so badly that violence will be acted upon them. It is why so many women begrudgingly give out their phone numbers to strangers or don’t defend themselves against crude catcalling. To protect oneself and act independently from men aggravates their sense of entitlement and can provoke them to react in extreme ways. Women should not have to censor themselves or react differently because of the men that they interact with. To allow casual misogyny is to allow women to believe that they do not matter.
