Misogyny to be labelled as extremism in the UK as Labour ramp up national security review
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has officially announced new government plans to declare misogyny as a form of extremism in the UK, pledging to crack down on harmful ideologies that spread hate targeted towards women.
According to the BBC, Cooper explained that there has been a noticeable and considerable rise in extremism “both online and on our streets” that “frays the very fabric of our communities and our democracy.”
This extremism strategy, due to be reviewed later this year, will also look at the rise in far-right extremism and nationalism across the UK, all recently culminating in the violent riots that took place at the end of July and the beginning of August. Spearheaded primarily by associates of the English Defence League (EDL), these acts of domestic terrorism put a spotlight on how widespread extremism in the UK truly is.
One of the primary goals of the review will be to map out exactly how these online organisations and groups target, recruit, and radicalise young people. The Home Secretary also stated that the review would “identify any gaps in existing policy which need to be addressed to crack down on those pushing harmful and hateful beliefs and violence.”
One of the biggest aspects of Labour’s 2024 manifesto revolved around national security, and specifically, they committed to conducting a Strategic Defence Review if brought to power. This review has promised to “take the approach used for dealing with non-state terrorism and adapt it to deal with state-based domestic security threats.”
Misogyny is now permeating every corner of social media and resulting in very real-life violence and retribution against women. For example, incel culture has been proven to be a driving force behind mass shootings.
As exemplified in a 2023 article that looked at the role that incelism and misogyny played in the 2014 Isla Vista shooting, writer Rachel Fugardi wrote: “Efforts to understand misogynist incels often fail to connect their male supremacist ideology with the everyday misogyny that permeates society. Beyond the mass attacks that capture headlines, this ideology manifests itself in everyday acts of gender-based violence that often go unnoticed. Similarly, legislative efforts to restrict reproductive rights, prevent individuals from accessing gender-affirming care, criminalise drag performances and end no-fault divorce all reflect this culture.”
In July, it was reported that police chiefs in the UK had admitted that violence against women and girls was a “national emergency” and a threat on the same scale as terrorism. If this doesn’t call for an extensive review, I don’t know what will.
The manosphere and male supremacist sect are threats the government has to take seriously and assess appropriately.
