All About the Manosphere

what is the manosphere?

For as long as feminists have fought for gender equality, there’s been pushback and resistance from men’s rights activists who feel their power and privilege in the world is under threat. They see complex issues like reduced job security and rising rates of men’s mental health problems as being solely caused by women, trans, and nonbinary people, when in reality, these are the result of years of political, economic, and technological shifts.

At the same time, our understanding of gender is broadening, and traditional, harmful ideas about masculinity are changing—which is a good thing! But while all of this is happening, boys and young men are feeling increasingly isolated and disconnected in their relationships: according to a 2023 report conducted by Equimondo, two-thirds of young men in the U.S. aged 18 to 23 feel that “no one really knows them.” As they seek advice and guidance on how to navigate a changing social landscape, many young men turn to the internet for answers and connection.

An image from White Ribbon’s My Friend Max Hate campaign. A young boy is looking at a tablet screen showing a video titled “The Max Hate Experience”. The video features a male puppet with dark hair, beard and mustache wearing headphones and speaking into a podcasting microphone.

This is where the manosphere and its content creators come into play. UN Women defines the manosphere as “a loose network of communities that claim to address men’s struggles--dating, fitness, or fatherhood, for example--but often promote harmful advice and attitudes.” Young men are drawn in by the promise of community and solutions to their problems, but then gradually, they’re exposed to radical ideas and opinions that enforce traditional, rigid gender roles, and hatred towards women, the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, and people of colour.

real world impacts

Rigid gender roles have a negative impact on all genders. They force a narrow definition of how to be and punish anyone who steps outside of those lines. Through the manosphere, boys may be pushed into conforming to extreme masculine stereotypes, which can lead to an increase in anxiety, self-harm, and risky behaviour. (UNWomen)   

The manosphere also creates unsafe conditions for girls, women and 2SLGBTQIA+ people online, contributing to technology-facilitated gender-based violence.  Women and gender-marginalized folks may be subject to hateful posts and comments on their social media pages, or have their intimate images shared online without consent in order to shame and humiliate them.

This hate is spilling over into the real world, too, leading to unhealthy relationships, intimate partner violence and hateful attacks targeting women. According to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, self-identified incels (involuntary celibates, a subset of the manosphere) have killed more than 50 people in Canada and the United States since 2014. This includes the deadly attack in Toronto, Ontario in 2018, when a man drove a van into a crowd of people on a sidewalk, killing 8 women and 2 men. Some members of the manosphere revere these murderers, and advocate for further mass violence against women.

recognize the signs

It’s important to be able to recognize the signs that someone in your life is being drawn into the manosphere, especially young boys and men. Here are some things you can watch for:

• social withdrawal and becoming secretive about online activity

• using more gendered hate speech or rigid gender beliefs

• negative changes in behaviour and attitudes, including greater distrust and hostility towards women or unhealthy obsessions with “manliness”

• dehumanizing humour, especially towards women and girls

• sexual harassment, including name calling or sexualizing the appearance of girls and women, such as teachers

  (Source: UNWomen)

Countering hate

While much responsibility for countering the manosphere sits with governments and tech companies needing to develop better and stronger policies and laws around violence against women, there are things that we can do in our everyday lives, too, especially as parents, guardians, or mentors of young men.

A good start is to promote healthy masculinity. We can do this by modelling empathy and communication. Let boys and young men know that it’s okay to express a full range of emotions, cry, and be vulnerable. We can point out unhealthy depictions of masculinity and gender stereotypes when we see them in media and have honest conversations about what they mean.

It’s especially important for this modelling to come from other boys and men. For all the negative influencers out there promoting male supremacy, there are also many working to advance gender equality. White Ribbon Campaign is one of those. They are a world-wide movement of men and boys working together to end violence against women and girls, promoting gender equity, healthy relationships and a new vision of masculinity. Their current social media campaign, My Friend Max Hate, talks about how toxic influencers prey on young men’s insecurities—fuelling hatred and violence when they’re most vulnerable. It’s an excellent resource for parents, guardians, and teachers to learn more about the manosphere and how to combat it.

It’s also important to teach kids media literacy. Help them to question the things they’re seeing and hearing. Where is this message coming from? Can the source be trusted? And why are these messages being targeted towards them? Media literacy is an important skill for all kids to learn. Mediasmarts.ca is a great resource for parents and teachers to learn more, with blogs, short videos, and accessible research.

more resources

For survivors:

If you’re in immediate danger, call 9-1-1.

If you or someone you know is currently experiencing violence, know that you are not alone. When you’re ready, reach out for support.

If you’re in Dawson City, Mayo, or Old Crow, give us a call at 867-993-5086. Our phone line is answered 24 hours a day.

In Whitehorse or elsewhere in the Yukon, call or text the Women’s Transition Home support line at 867-668-5733.

If you’re in the Yukon or British Columbia, you can contact VictimLink BC at 1-800-563-0808 or by texting 604-836-6381

If you’re outside of the territory, check out sheltersafe.ca to find a women’s shelter or crisis line near you.

Visit techsafety.ca for tips and tools to keep yourself safe from technology facilitated gender-based violence.

For boys and men:

White Ribbon - Check out their video to learn more about how manosphere influencers target young men, and then read on to learn strategies for countering it. You can also browse through past campaigns, focused on things like redefining masculinity, healthy relationships, and violence against women.

Equimondo - has worked internationally and in the US since 2011 to engage men and boys as allies in gender equality, promote healthy manhood, and prevent violence.

HeForShe - is the United Nations global solidarity movement for gender equality. It is an invitation for men and people of all genders to stand in solidarity with women to create a bold, visible and united force for gender equality.