In recent times, the news has been flooded with reports of mass shootings and hate crimes. The frequency of incidents, including two mass shootings in a single week and the alarming rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans, is profoundly distressing. A significant number of these hateful acts stem from male supremacy and an aversion to women, particularly feminism. Alarmingly, such crimes are on the rise.
This trend isn’t new. An FBI report from November 2020 indicated that hate crimes in the U.S. had reached their highest level in over a decade. Advocacy groups suggest that actual hate crime statistics are likely much lower than reality. The Southern Poverty Law Center estimates approximately 204,600 individuals fall victim to hate crimes annually in America.
Many offenders of these crimes are young men linked to male supremacist ideologies. According to data from Statista.com, since 1982, there have been 119 mass shootings in the U.S., with a staggering 116 carried out by male shooters. In 2018, the Southern Poverty Law Center and the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) began tracking male supremacy as one of the ideologies they monitor.
Understanding Hate Crimes
The FBI defines a hate crime as a “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender’s bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity.” Essentially, to classify as a hate crime, there must be a criminal act with proven biased motives against the victim’s protected characteristics. Hate crime laws offer protections based on actual or perceived traits, but proving such cases in court can be challenging. While federal and state hate crime laws exist, they vary significantly across states. Notably, Arkansas, South Carolina, and Wyoming lack hate crime statutes.
What Is Male Supremacy?
Male supremacy is an ideology rooted in misogyny, advocating for a return to “traditional” gender roles and blaming women for men’s perceived failures. This perspective posits that men are inherently superior to women and entitled to access to them. It often arises from a fear of losing status among white men.
The Southern Poverty Law Center identifies several factions within the male supremacist movement, including:
- Men’s rights activists: Claim to advocate for men’s rights while blaming women.
- Red Pillers: Believe in a feminist conspiracy dominating society.
- Pick-up artists (PUA): Seek to seduce women while demeaning them.
- Involuntary celibates (incels): Express anger and violence due to their inability to form intimate relationships.
- Men going their own way (MGTOW): Reject women entirely, seeking to distance themselves from perceived negative influences.
Male Supremacy Hate Crimes
Disturbingly, these ideologies have justified horrific acts of violence. For instance, a young man named Thomas Reed attempted to assault a sorority house at a university, resulting in several deaths and injuries. In his manifesto, he articulated a desire for revenge against women who rejected him. Another incident involved Jason Clark, who killed ten people in a vehicle attack, explicitly identifying himself with incel beliefs in a social media post. These men are not isolated; they find community and radicalization in online forums that promote violent misogyny.
Data Collection on Hate Crimes
Surprisingly, gender-motivated hate crimes constitute only about 1% of the hate crimes reported to the FBI. Experts warn that this figure greatly underrepresents the issue. The Southern Poverty Law Center asserts that the FBI’s records significantly underestimate the problem due to various factors, including the lack of mandatory reporting by law enforcement and inadequate training on hate crime data collection. Many victims also choose not to report crimes.
The prevalence of violence fueled by extreme misogyny is a pressing issue that demands immediate action, as the situation is likely to worsen.