A man who sympathised wth the mysoginist 'incel' subculture has been found guilty under the Terrorism Act of possessing weapons including a crossbow and machete.
Gabrielle Friel, 22, fantasised about spree killings and was said to "sympathise" with the misogynist 'incel' subculture which has taken root among disaffected young men around the globe.
Meaning 'involuntary celibate', the term has been spread across the internet and taken up by those who feel frozen out by the opposite sex and by the world at large.
It took a deadly new meaning in 2014 following the murderous rampage of Californian Elliot Rodger, who killed six people before turning his weapon on himself.
What is an incel?
The incel subculture of self-professed involuntary celibates is a “deeply sexist and misogynistic” development of age-old sexism that has been given a boost with the rise of internet communities, according to a University of St Andrews expert.
Tim Wilson, director of the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence at the University of St Andrews, spoke to the PA news agency after the conviction of Gabrielle Friel on a terrorism charge at the following a five-day trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.
Friel, 22, was cleared of preparing to commit acts of terrorism by researching spree killing mass murderers online, particularly those connected to the incel subculture.
READ MORE: 'Incel' Gabrielle Friel found guilty of terrorism charges in Edinburgh
As part of this charge, he was alleged to have “expressed affinity with and sympathy for one incel-motivated mass murderer”.
He was found guilty of possessing weapons for a purpose suspected to be in connection with an act of terrorism.
Mr Wilson said: “This isn’t sophisticated but the problem is the volume of people who might be flirting with this kind of scene.
“There’s been plenty of sexist, violent men since the dawn of history but the sense of this being a public movement could not exist without the rise of social media and the internet.
“The basic idea, I’m afraid, is the idea that sexual fulfilment is a human right and that as a man not getting it, you’re somehow being actively deprived and repressed by women.”
He added: “It’s deeply sexist and misogynistic, powered by an attraction to deeply self-pitying people.”
How did the subculture begin?
The incel movement gained momentum in 2014 after the Isla Vista killings by Elliot Rodger in California.
He murdered six people before turning his weapon on himself in an act of violence he described as his “war on women” who were not attracted to him.
The killer posted videos of himself online setting out his “manifesto”, as well as declaring he would get revenge on women and sexually active men.
Mr Wilson believes Rodger was a turning point for the subculture as it made him into a “hero” – with some calling him Saint Elliot.
He said: “We have these very dark corners of the internet where lonely, frustrated people can be attracted and reinforce each others’ prejudices and world views.
“Out of that comes a grey borderland of socially disturbed killings.”
How widespread is the incel movement?
There have been 44 deaths related to incels since 2014, according to Mr Wilson, including 10 in a Toronto van attack by Alek Minassia in 2018.
Mr Wilson draws a distinction with episodes like these and the 1989 Montreal Massacre – when Marc Lepine entered a class at the Ecole Polytechnique and killed 14 women – as it took place when online platforms were not widespread.
Lepine said he was “fighting feminism” before opening fire.
READ MORE: Inside The Secret World Of Incels
Mr Wilson believes the reason this attack did not have a similar impact as Rodger’s is that people with violently sexist views were not able to share and encourage each others’ ideas online.
The internet now has multiple forums that attract incels to discuss their own frustrations about not being sexually active, often blaming women.
How can it be tackled?
Mr Wilson said incels should be treated as a “quasi-political” movement for it to be tackled by authorities.
He highlighted its sporadic nature “within self-pitying people with social problems”, which has created a tendency for it be dismissed.
But the professor said the community appears to be more organised – despite attacks being carried out by lone actors – and makes references to the manifesto of Rodger in the way a political uprising could be described.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel