Misogyny to be treated as extremism by the UK government
Extreme misogyny will be classified as a form of extremism under new government plans, according to the Home Office.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has initiated a review of the UK’s counter-extremism strategy to address the threats posed by harmful ideologies. The review will focus on various ideological trends, including rising hatred of women, which the government views as increasingly influential.
Cooper noted a surge in extremism “both online and in our communities” that is “undermining the very fabric of our society and democracy.”
The analysis will examine the growth of Islamist and far-right extremism in the UK, along with other ideological movements, such as extreme misogyny and related forms of violence. It will also explore the causes and processes of radicalizing young people.
Cooper stated that the strategy will “map and monitor extremist trends” to develop ways to disrupt and redirect individuals away from them.
Additionally, it aims to “identify gaps in existing policy” to better tackle those promoting harmful and violent ideologies. She emphasized that efforts against extremism have been “significantly weakened” in recent years.
The work will inform a new counter-extremism strategy, which was promised in Labour’s manifesto and which the Home Office says will “respond to growing and changing patterns” of extremism across the UK.
The review is expected to be completed by October. It is one of several policy reviews Labour has announced since coming to power in July, including the Strategic Defence Review, a spending review, and a review of the National Curriculum.
Critics might argue that some reviews are a proxy for actual action, but Labour has pointed out that there has been no new Counter Extremism Strategy since 2015, and that an assessment of new and emerging threats is overdue.
This is also not the first time the government has considered misogyny as a form of extremism.
For some years there has been concern around “Incel culture”, an online movement of mainly young men who describe themselves as “involuntarily celibate” and blame women and “alpha males” for their problems.
A mass shooting in Plymouth in 2021 by 22-year-old Jake Davison, who killed five people before fatally shooting himself, was linked to Incel ideology.
At the time no further policy action was taken, but incidents like that one, and also the rise of social media influencers such as Andrew Tate – a self-proclaimed misogynist – may have pushed the new government to think again.
