**Incels should be considered terrorists because labelling them as anything else underestimates the threat they pose to society.** • Incels want women punished for their status as [‘involuntary celibates’](https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/incel-meaning-explained) and have demonstrated acts of terrorism in pursuit of these aims. The term _‘incel’_ is used to describe a group of “deeply misogynistic men” who blame women for their lack of sexual relationships. They believe women should be “verbally shamed” and often “physically punished with sexual assault, rape or disfigurement”. This is an _extremely_ dangerous group of people. • [Terrorism](https://www.cps.gov.uk/crime-info/terrorism) is defined as “the use or threat of action” with the intention of influencing government and intimidating the public. To be regarded as terrorism, it must also be “for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause” which, in my opinion, accurately describes an ‘incel’. These people have the desire to rid society of those who they believe to be responsible for their lack of sexual intimacy and will resort to extremely violent means to achieve this. • [Plymouth, UK](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-trending-44053828) recently experienced an act of terror at the hands of an alleged incel. Davison was active on social media in the lead up to his attack, where he discussed the movement of incels and expressed his frustration with his negative experiences with relationships. The words of incels are characterised by failure and frustration. Jake _Davison killed 5 people_, including a child, before turning the gun on himself. Similar acts of terror have happened across the United States, often fuelled by the same incel motivations. • With what we know about incels and how they operate, think and act, I think it would be irresponsible not to consider them as terrorists. Incels are motivated by their hate and need to punish, often women. In extreme cases, they will go to great lengths to get their message across. I argue that this message is political in nature and therefore counts as terrorism.

**Incel isn't the disease. It's the symptom.** First of all, let's separate "involuntary celibacy" as a concept from "incel" as a group. Most people who have not been sexually-active later in life are not "incels". Basically, what "incels" are now started with "Pick-Up Artist" books that were basically written to exploit the insecurities of teenage boys. This is what I would consider the virus. In fact, I was one such kid. I had major struggles in this area I now realize probably needed therapy. But therapy wasn't a suggestion. The idea thrown at me was that I only had myself to blame for these issues and that I simply needed to stop being a loser. Never that I had reasonable insecurities and that things get better with time. "PUA" books were the only things acknowledging these issues, taking them seriously, and trying to offer solutions. Unfortunately, those solutions involved narratives about aggressive "alpha male" hierarchies. It also offered solutions that I found outright predatory. The concept made me bitter and agitated very quickly. I felt like I was only respected if I was villainous. I have existing depression, so at its worst, I did have suicidal thoughts. And yes, the thought of "taking down others with me" came to mind. I was lucky in that I recognized this bitterness and agitation right away and tried to work myself out of it. Since then, I sought out therapy of my own volition to discuss the toxicity, and also the underlying issues. In my case, it was....less than savory actions directed towards me, and later being assaulted and nearly losing my college career due to rumors girls spread about me. The modern-day "incel" groups tend to be a sink that draws in psychologically-compromised men, because many/most men why are psychologically-compromised have relationship troubles. I'm less interested in labeling every insecure teenage boy a terrorist because they were drawn to this style of group. It's easy to just point a finger, label a "villain", and then say they don't deserve further analysis or act like they were "born that way". That takes zero effort and is essentially the laziest way out you could take. I'm much more interested in guiding them away from it, which I actively try to do when I see signs of it. The narrative itself is what needs to be tackled, because it feeds on dark feelings and then expands them.

**Expanding the definition of terror must be done cautiously so as to avoid extreme surveillance of ordinary citizens - but the rise of incels must be taken seriously** An 'incel', short for involuntary celibate, has become synonymous with 'misogynist' in today's culture. It isn't hard to see why: the Southern Poverty Law Center described them as ['part of the male supremacist ecosystem'](https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2018/04/24/i-laugh-death-normies-how-incels-are-celebrating-toronto-mass-killing), with conversations being characterised by misogyny, self-pity and self-hatred, a sense of entitlement to sex, and an endorsement of violence against women. But considering the subversive way innocent people are mistakenly branded as terrorists, we must make sure this does not result in discrimination: - Islamophobia in the West thrives upon [the false notion that Muslims are inherently terroristic](https://theconversation.com/islamophobia-in-western-media-is-based-on-false-premises-151443) - this has resulted in a surge in hate crimes against Muslims, especially since 9/11 - In an increasingly digital world, [personal data is constantly under threat](https://www.economist.com/open-future/2019/12/13/surveillance-is-a-fact-of-life-so-make-privacy-a-human-right), so proper measures must be adhered to to prevent minorities being discriminated against - However, the severity of the violence inflicted by incels perhaps warrants the definition of terrorism - just this month, [a British man found to have belonged to incel communities online shot five people](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-trending-44053828), prompting questions as to how he was able to purchase a gun - Violence inflicted by incels is rooted in misogyny, racism, homophobia, and an desire for total white male supremacy, i.e. discrimination and violence in pursuit of political aims - [the very definition of terrorism](https://www.britannica.com/topic/terrorism) There is no simple way to define terrorism, or what act can be constituted a terrorist one. Incels present one of the most dangerous threats to modern society, and *must* be stamped out imminently. But prevention is always, *always* better than cure - women dying should not provoke an argument over the definition of the event, rather a determination to never let it happen again.

Incel is a term people made up to "other" normal members of society. Its akin to calling someone a virgin. It sands for "involuntary celibate" everything you know and hear about incels is fed to you though the media and twitter. Calling virgins "white supremist" and "terrorists" is laughable at best.

A frustrated minority While there have been instances of violence from this community, not all incels are violent misogynists that go out and kill people. They are mostly introverts with bad social skills and as a result, some of them are looking for something or someone to blame. Like others have said this is a symptom of other problems that need to be addressed.