VANCOUVER —
Some experts say violent online rhetoric among so-called involuntary celibates is a concern as pandemic rules lift, but others say the threat of violence is overstated among a group of men who need mental health support.
Involuntary celibates or incels are made up predominantly of young heterosexual men who feel they are unable to attract romantic partners because of their looks or social status, says the think-tank Moonshot CVE. They often blame women, sexually active men and “oppressive societal structures” for their feelings of rejection and isolation, it says.
As attacks linked to the so-called movement mounted in recent years, authorities around the world began treating it as a terrorism threat.
A report released in September that was done for the federal government by Moonshot said lifting COVID-19 restrictions could result in more suicides, violence and acts of terror.
“Our researchers called (the pandemic) a great equalizer because incels believed everyone would experience the social and romantic isolation that they suffer on a daily basis,” said Moonshot spokesperson Alex Amend. “The end of lockdown and things opening up again will actually be more of a triggering point for them, so it would be beneficial for practitioners to pay more attention to the re-entry.”
Amend said the pandemic has exacerbated seclusion, alienation and anger, driving more people online seeking connections. Moonshot’s research suggests suicidal ideation and nihilistic attitudes are common in online forums that also perpetuate resistance to mental health treatment, he added.
“There is a critical need for mental health professionals to be trained to recognize incel ideology,” Amend said.
But Sophia Moskalenko, a U.S.-based clinical and social psychologist specializing in radicalization and terrorism, said violence shouldn’t be the main concern and she is calling for more research into non-violent incels in what she regards as a largely neglected mental health crisis.
“Radicalization is not necessarily the main issue among incels. Only a small minority of them actually endorse radical ideas, and an even tinier minority have ever acted out on them,” she said in an interview. “My work has been consistent in that the relationship between ideology and radical action is extremely weak.”
The term incel gained national attention in 2018 when Alek Minassian drove a van along a sidewalk in Toronto, killing 10 people and injuring 16 others. A woman who was hospitalized after the attack also succumbed to her injuries in November.
During his trial, the court heard that Minassian composed a message about the “incel rebellion” before the attack then posted it on Facebook immediately afterward, before he was arrested.
A psychiatrist told the trial the fact that Minassian was a virgin and never had a relationship with a woman contributed to him feeling lonely. Reading about incels made him feel better about himself, the psychiatrist said.
Minassian believed tying his attack to the incel movement would increase his notoriety, even though he acknowledged he had no real anger toward women, the court heard.
Minassian was never charged with terrorism but was found guilty of 10 counts of first-degree murder and 16 counts of attempted murder. He will be sentenced later this year.
A study conducted by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue in 2020 says there are at least 6,600 online channels motivated by ideological violent extremism with some form of Canadian involvement. On its website, Public Safety Canada said that makes Canadians among the most active in these online movements.
“The threat of IMVE (ideologically motivated violent extremism) in Canada continues to grow, and our government is stepping up our efforts to address it,” the department said in an email.
It has given nearly $5 million to Moonshot since 2017 to analyze the online subculture in Canada. The U.K. think-tank targets people searching for online violent extremist information and forums, directing them instead to resources where they can get help.
In May 2020, terror charges were laid against a 17-year-old boy, who cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, after a stabbing attack at a Toronto massage parlour that resulted in the death of Ashley Noelle. It left another woman seriously injured.
The youth was initially charged with first-degree murder and attempted murder, but Public Safety Canada said Toronto police allegedly found evidence suggesting the attack was motivated by incel ideology. He was subsequently charged with two terrorism offences. The case is still before the courts and none of the allegations have been proven.
It is the first time police have treated an alleged incel-inspired attack as an act of terror and legal experts say it could force a reckoning of the courts’ definition of terrorism.
Leah West, a former Department of Justice lawyer and national security expert at Carleton University, said the concept of terrorism has been a “moving target.”
“There’s been a lot of confusion about what terrorism is under the law because it hasn’t been applied equally in cases across Canadian history. It tends to catch the type of terrorism the laws were originally designated to catch, which is al-Qaida and ISIS-inspired terrorism, but it hasn’t been applied to other threats,” West said.
Because previous terrorism offences were either politically or religiously motivated, the courts must first define ideology, West said. Then prosecutors will need to prove involuntary celibacy meets that definition to prove the terror charges.
West said there are three main reasons for using the terror designation: to equally apply the law regardless of occupation, race, gender or political characteristics; to denounce the crime and act as a deterrent; and to acknowledge that a group was victimized.
She added that the designation does not affect sentencing, but it is a more difficult offence for the prosecution to prove.
The International Center for the Study on Violent Extremism in Washington published a study in January 2021 that examined COVID-19 measures and the Canadian incel terror designation to determine if either issue intensified feelings of isolation and fostered resentment toward society.
Researchers surveyed more than 400 men in August 2020 who were active in the largest incel-specific forum on the internet. They say 50.8 per cent of respondents said the terrorism charges increased their resentment toward society, while 30.2 per cent said pandemic-related isolation had done so.
Jesse Morton, one of its lead researchers, said he believes most academic research has relied too heavily on the radicalization trajectories of the relatively small number of incels that have carried out acts of violence.
“Data shows that very few people that hold radical ideologies go on to commit acts of violence and if you stigmatize them, you can actually facilitate greater violence,” Morton said.
He said there is a need to directly engage with incels and for more study on the effects of public stigmatization and social exclusion on them.
Moonshot’s next project for the federal government aims to increase understanding of incels to help prevent radicalization and better respond to violence, Public Safety Canada said in its grant disclosure.
Amend said the company is also focused on creating a national network of mental health practitioners and counter-extremism experts trained to recognize incel ideology.
“The main issue is (incels) are not getting the support they need, so they’re seeking support in these toxic communities,” he said. “If we can offer support for the mental health aspects, we can help people reintegrate into society, and hopefully prevent them from falling into the more violent behaviour.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2022.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida State has asked a judge to decide key parts of its lawsuit against the Atlantic Coast Conference without a trial, hoping for a quicker resolution and path to a possible exit from the league.
Florida State requested a partial summary judgment from Circuit Judge John Cooper in a 574-page document filed earlier this week in Leon County, the Tallahassee-based school’s home court.
Florida State sued the ACC in December, challenging the validity of a contract that binds member schools to the conference and each other through media rights and claiming the league’s exit fees and penalties for withdrawal are exorbitant and unfair.
In its original compliant, Florida State said it would cost the school more than half a billion dollars to break the grant of rights and leave the ACC.
“The recently-produced 2016 ESPN agreements expose that the ACC has no rights to FSU home games played after it leaves the conference,” Florida State said in the filing.
Florida State is asking a judge to rule on the exit fees and for a summary judgment on its breach of contract claim, which says the conference broke its bylaws when it sued the school without first getting a majority vote from the entire league membership.
The case is one of four active right now involving the ACC and one of its members.
The ACC has sued Florida State in North Carolina, claiming the school is breaching a contract that it has signed twice in the last decade simply by challenging it.
The judge in Florida has already denied the ACC’s motion to dismiss or pause that case because the conference filed first in North Carolina. The conference appealed the Florida decision in a hearing earlier this week.
Clemson is also suing the ACC in South Carolina, trying to find an affordable potential exit, and the conference has countersued that school in North Carolina, too.
The dispute is tied to the ACC’s long-term deal with ESPN, which runs through 2036, and leaves those schools lagging well behind competitors in the Southeastern Conference and Big Ten when it comes to conference-payout revenue.
Florida State has said the athletic department is in danger of falling behind by as much as $40 million annually by being in the ACC.
“Postponing the resolution of this question only compounds the expense and travesty,” the school said in the latest filing.
The ACC has implemented a bonus system called a success initiative that will reward schools for accomplishments on the field and court, but Florida State and Clemson are looking for more as two of the conference’s highest-profile brands and most successful football programs.
The ACC evenly distributes revenue from its broadcast deal, though new members California, Stanford and SMU receive a reduced and no distribution. That money is used to fund the pool for the success initiative.
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QUEBEC – Australian road cyclist Michael Matthews raced to victory at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec on Friday.
Matthews earned a record third career victory in Quebec City. He was previously tied with Slovakia’s Peter Sagan with two wins.
The Jayco-AlUla rider won the fastest edition of the Quebec race on the UCI World Tour calendar.
Matthews, who claimed titles in 2018 and 2019, edged out Eritrea’s Biniam Girmay and France’s Rudy Molard in a thrilling sprint.
Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar, the heavy favourite, was unable to follow through with his attack launched just over two kilometres from the finish line. He finished in seventh place.
Pogacar will look to redeem himself at the Montreal cycling Grand Prix on Sunday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps have loaned midfielder Jay Herdman to Cavalry FC of the Canadian Premier League and rewarded two Whitecaps FC 2 players with MLS contracts.
Midfielder Jeevan Badwal signed as a homegrown player through 2027, with options for 2028 and 2029, while forward Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau signed an MLS contract through 2025, with club options for 2026 and 2027.
Both have been playing for the Whitecaps’ MLS Next Pro team along with the 20-year-old Herdman, the son of Toronto FC coach John Herdman.
The moves were made before Friday’s MLS and CPL roster freeze.
Born in New Zealand while his father was working for the New Zealand Football Federation, Jay Herdman was also part of the New Zealand soccer team at the Paris Olympics with three appearances including two starts. Herdman’s loan deal runs through the end of the CPL season.
“Jay is an important signing for us, who will provide another attacking option for the run-in,” Cavalry coach and GM Tommy Wheeldon Jr. said in a statement. “He’s a player that we’ve been tracking since we played against Whitecaps in pre-season and he has very good quality, with terrific energy and the ability to contribute to goals.
“With the recent injury to Mael Henry, Jay’s positional profile and age helps us with on-field options and minutes that count towards the league’s required 2,000 U-21 domestic minutes during the regular season.”
Badwal, an 18-year-old from suburban Surrey, is the 26th academy player to sign an MLS contract with the Whitecaps.
“Having joined our academy in 2019, Jeevan continues to progress through our club and takes every challenge in stride,” Whitecaps FC sporting director Axel Schuster said in a statement. “He is comfortable on the ball, positionally sound, and does the simple things very well. We are excited for Jeevan to make the next step in his young career.”
Badwal has made 19 appearances with Whitecaps 2 this season, scoring two goals and adding three assists. A Canadian youth international, he started all three matches for Canada at the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup
Badwal made his first-team debut off the bench in the first leg of the Canadian Championship semifinal against Pacific FC.
Chateau was originally selected 74th overall by the Whitecaps in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft after spending two years at St. John’s University.
The 22-year-old from Ottawa signed an MLS NEXT Pro contract with Whitecaps FC 2 in March. He leads Whitecaps FC 2 in goal-scoring this season with eight goals across 21 appearances (including eight starts).
“Nicolas leads MLS NEXT Pro in shots on target, has a very strong work rate and willpower. We are looking forward to seeing his growth as he builds on his young professional career,” said Schuster.
Chateau made his first-team debut as a second-half substitute at CF Montreal on July 6.
Herdman, who joined the Whitecaps academy as a 13-year-old, has made 19 appearances for Whitecaps FC 2 in 2024, scoring six goals and adding three assists. He made his MLS debut in April as a second-half substitute in a 2-0 victory at the Seattle Sounders.
Internationally, Herdman has represented New Zealand 29 times across the U-19, U-20, and U-23 sides. He was part of New Zealand’s squad at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup, starting three matches at the tournament and scoring against Uzbekistan.
The Whitecaps host San Jose on Saturday while Cavalry entertains Atletico Ottawa on Sunday.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024
