Speaker
Description
Online incel communities are often characterised by sexual frustration, misogyny, and far-right content. However, less attention has been paid to the economic narratives articulated within these spaces. This paper examines how German-speaking incel communities construct narratives of economic victimhood as a form of structural inequality, fostering social isolation and job disengagement. Drawing on a non-participatory online ethnography and Kruglanski’s 3N model of radicalisation, the article argues that economic victimhood narratives are crucial in transforming individual grievances into collective resentment and ideological radicalisation.
Posts from German-language incel forums reveal recurring reports of social exclusion and bullying in education and employment. Rising living costs and inflation are interpreted as evidence of man-made systemic injustice, often blamed on the ‘Boomer’ generations or political and economic elites accused of undermining young men’s futures. These narratives construct economic inequality as a generational injustice, reinforcing a shared victim identity.
This perceived economic hopelessness contributes to protest promotion such as “Citizen’s benefit-Maxxing” and “No Pussy, No Work”, which encourage withdrawal from labour as a form of resistance. By focusing on the political economy of sexual disadvantage, the article offers a new perspective on the ideological foundations of the incel movement and its links to broader extremist discourses.
| Institutional Affiliation | Graduate Master "Terrorism, Security & Society" from King's College London |
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