One of the unintended consequences of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, commonly known as the 1994 Crime Bill, was that it drastically altered the demographics of certain communities. One of its provisions was that it mandated life sentences for offenders convicted of a third felony, even if the third offense was nonviolent, which disproportionately affected Black and Latino men, who were more likely to have prior convictions for a number of reasons, including systemic policing disparities – this is not to say that law enforcement officers are racist but rather to acknowledge that the criminal justice system, by evolution and for a number of reasons, tends to favor, white middle class people; especially those with resources.

The 1994 Crime Bill didn’t just end up swelling prison populations, it deeply reshaped Black communities. By intensifying incarceration rates among Black men, it also destabilized families and deprived many children of father figures. Research from sociology, psychology, and criminology shows that the absence of a father figure, especially in contexts where other supportive adult male role models are also lacking can have measurable effects on children’s development. Whilst these effects are not inevitable (many children without fathers thrive), statistical patterns across large populations show some consistent trends e.g., children without an involved father are more likely to show behavioral problems, including aggression and rule-breaking (Amato & Gilbreth, 1999; Lamb, 2010), and boys, in particular, appear at greater risk for early criminal involvement when raised without consistent male role models – even when those role models are persistent offenders; most don’t want their children to “inherit” their lifestyle.

                When male authority figures are “removed” from society for whatever reason, changes in social structure and behavior occur. One that has been noted in Glasgow is young male teenagers talking in a higher-pitched voice. One of the reasons – and there are many – is that more children/teenagers – are growing up in households that are predominantly female i.e., the father is absent (has either left or is incarcerated), and the child teenager is being brought up by the mother, aunts and/or grandmothers etc. This means that teenage men are learning to speak and replicate speech by listening/interacting with women, which has led them to start speaking in a higher octave.

As well as “learning” to speak differently, due to the absence of men in their life, teenage boys have sought other sources as to learn how to be a “man” – a vacuum that has been filled by the “Manosphere”. Something that has become so influential that even teenage men who have male authority figures in their lives are turning to it for an education in what it is to be a man e.g., they see the real men in their life as being ill-informed and irrelevant and instead look to influencers and seemingly “successful” online men to be their guides and role models etc. Whilst there may be individuals within this crowd who are trying to present a positive image of masculinity, which includes a respect for women etc., this vacuum has largely been filled and exploited by those who are toxic and preach a message of successful and unsuccessful men, usually within an evolutionary sexual context i.e., there are those who get to procreate i.e., have sex, and those who don’t. I have written before about some of the “effects” of incel culture, and how it has grown/developed etc., but I realize I’ve never explained the fundamental concepts and ideas behind it. This article looks to address this, and explain the foundations of the manosphere, because for me it represents a very real and dangerous challenge to our society – and I don’t believe I’m catastrophizing by saying this.

The film “the Matrix” has punched well above its weight as a social/culture phenomenon, and I don’t believe anybody involved with its production thought/realized the long-term impact it would have. It’s something that is almost so unbelievable that it’s easy to ignore and/or dismiss – especially from an academic/scientific perspective i.e., nobody is stupid enough to take their value/belief system from a movie etc. However, many have, and whilst they may have misinterpreted and/or re-invented ideas from this movie franchise, many, many young people have adopted a viewpoint concerning masculine identity and sexuality based on ideas presented in the Matrix. Even as I write this, I acknowledge how ridiculous this may seem, and at times – as a middle-aged man - I have difficulty believing that a fictional universe would provide the values and reality for people living in the real-world however this is something that is much more pervasive amongst young people than older “rational” minds might want to believe.   

The Manosphere acts as a decentralized network of websites and forums that attracts under-fathered (the term under-fathered applies to those who lack, for whatever reason, a male figure they look up to/aspire to be) boys, who want to discuss, debate and formulate what it means to be a “man”. In the film The Matrix, the main character takes a red pill that allows him to understand the dark realities of what it is to live inside the Matrix. When you take the figurative red pill within the Manosphere, you “learn” the dark truth about women and their sexual desires i.e., those who are “nice guys” will experience heartbreak and failure, because when it actually comes down to it women prefer “bad boys.” Whilst there are women that genuinely crave the attention of those “bad boys”, for many (like their male counter-parts), it is often temporary; constant thrills, excitement and uncertainty quickly become exhausting. However, the Manosphere builds on this suggesting that it isn’t just individual women who are attracted to such men but rather that men only try to play the nice guy role because they’ve been manipulated into doing so by their feminist mothers/culture i.e., the “system”. When they take the “red pill” they become aware of this and are empowered to act. Those who don’t take the red pill, continue to take the “blue pill” and continue to be exploited by the system and those who created it i.e., they remain betas not alphas; and like all good conspiracy theories, whether it’s about the manosphere or the fact is that the earth is flat, it soon comes back to the Jews; apparently I’m not content to be running a Krav Maga school in Boston, I want to bring down governments and adversely affect exchange rates (but of course that’s what you’re “meant” to believe).

There are reasons we have got here, where young men, are believing that they have taken the red pill, and now understand how everything works. Some are looking to the Andrew Tate’s of this world for guidance and are spreading an entitled misogyny, that sees them exploiting women for their own personal gain etc., others are looking to these same influencers and concluding that the odds are stacked against them – INCELs - and are engaging in violence, including sexual violence, against women. The solution to this is not the elimination/reduction in masculinity but a redirection towards what being a man should be, and at the top of that list is a respect for women – which if adopted would see a quantum reduction in overall violence.