There were many shocking and horrifying realities highlighted in Louis Theroux’s most recent documentary ‘Inside the Manosphere’, with Theroux’s unique interview style allowing interviewees to expose themselves or dig their own grave. The documentary interviewed a few content creators who are part of the red pill movement, rejecting authority structures and mainstream ideas.
A common trope within this movement and its followers is Misogyny. These creators believe in traditional values around gender and how women should partake as the homemaker and carer. Whilst they belittled and degraded women within the sex industry, they were happy to monetise off Only Fans models.
It is not surprising for many women that some ‘men’ hold these ideas and values. However, Theroux’s documentary style highlighted more than just Misogyny, but how this movement also perceives Jewish people. Some of these content creators pushed the concept of a ‘Jewish Conspiracy’; an Antisemitic idea that suggests Jews are a ‘dark force’ with malicious intent to control the media, politicians, and the financial sector.
Antisemitism and Misogyny are both values and beliefs the red pill movement hold, but why are these the two strands the movement thinks are going to break them out of the matrix?
The answer lies not just in ideology, but in psychology.
The simple answer is scapegoating. Blaming women and Jews for the world’s misgivings, with centuries of practise. Scapegoating offers certainty to those who feel powerless.
The unique nature of using Jews as a scapegoat is that often Antisemites are seen to ‘punch up’, feeding into the idea that ‘Jewish Conspirators’ are manipulators in high places. This has led Jews to be blamed by Antisemites for some of the greatest struggles and challenges of our time. This is inclusive of but not exhaustive of, the death of Jesus, the Bubonic Plague, Coronavirus, poisoning wells, and 9/11, thus demonstrating the depth and severity the hatred of Jews has materialised into.
Women also have the shared experience of being a centuries old scapegoat, also being accused of stereotypes Jews are also accused of holding, such as being conniving and manipulative. This perception of women and their traits made them the perfect target during the witch trials, where women were disproportionately persecuted for making deals with the devil. These ‘witches’ were tortured and killed in tests that were intended to detect whether they were a witch or not. If claiming not be a witch, they would have to die to prove their innocence. A catch 22.
Scapegoating has become more popular in times of unstable and polarising politics. Again, this has been the pattern throughout time; religious tension and the Witch-Trials, the Holocaust and the far-right Nazi Regime. Women and Jews have been a constantly and relentlessly targeted.
Red pill men are consistent with their hatred and scapegoating of Jews and Women, alongside the rest of history. But scapegoating can only exist because it presents a cause or reason for the struggles. A reason made the actions seem justified. For centuries, part of the justification has emerged from religion.
Religion underpins this hatred and isolation. In the western world this is often derived from religious writings, including the Bible in which Jews were accused of the responsibility of Jesus’ death, and women accused of when Eve ate the apple. These ideas, stories, or truth, whatever they may be, have had an integral influence and role throughout society and time. The stereotypes produced are similar and have stuck, with polarising politics presenting a resurgence.
The views on Jews and Women are intersectional, and complexly linked to many books, religious books, authority’s, cultures, education, poverty, but in the western world one of the origins can be traced back to over 2000 years ago; The Bible. Since then, women and Jews have been painted as manipulative, weak, evil, malicious, and above all inferior. This may not have been the intention of the Bible, but left in the wrong hands these tales have been weaponised over years of persecution.
This is part of the ‘justification’ of the scapegoating, as all harm can be labelled as for a bigger and more godly purpose and cause.
But then we have the red pill men, not always religious but have held on to the stories of old. Religion is not a great player today, but it is used within society none the less, the impact and significance being undeniable.
The damage had been done already, but now it has escalated on account of a new force.
Social media is the accelerator of extremism. The extreme views are not new, but the communication is. Programmes are built around each individual, creating a space for extreme content that seems like the norm for that individual as it is all they see. Lack of regulation means anyone can say anything, no matter how hateful or damaging. They can say it as loud as they wish with the safety of their screen in front of them.
Those that generate the greatest concern are children, who’s brains are still developing, being exposed to such extreme content. Innocence is stolen as they do not hold the same capability as an adult to determine what’s right or wrong. This generates the deeply detrimental impact such content has on developing brains and emerging worldviews.
Social media is a gift to extremists. The extremist who tells warnings of the ‘Jewish Conspiracy’ and fears of the unnatural position, of women out of the home and holding many opinions.
The manosphere is not a new phenomenon, it is old hatred wearing new clothes. Jews and Women are brother and sister in their persecution, now exasperated by social media and the red pill movement. A change of format but the same core.
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
