Throughout the last decade, we made a significant amount of progress in fighting for equality between man and woman. However, there are still people who keep the same old mindset about how women should be labelled as objects. This way of thinking feeds men’s ego to the point where they created an ideology of it. And that group is called the Alt-Right, where they believe in all white male supremacy. On March 3rd, we listened to Jay Marquis Manicom’s ethnographic study called “From the Red Pill to “White Genocide”: An ethnography of the Alt-Right in Montreal”, where he talked about how the group came together and ended up being part of the Alt-Right movement. 

While Manicom was presenting his thesis, he mentioned one point that was disturbing. He said that the group he was studying all went to “The Red Pill” to talk poorly on woman and set ideas on how women should be placed in society. Some examples he used was that they wanted women to not vote anymore, to have no political position, and to basically stay out of their business. In addition, they use violent words and/or actions to express their manhood because like Kimmel said “violence is often the single most evident marker of manhood” . To continue, not only to they talk badly on woman, they also talk about how to get laid. They try so hard to be the stereotypical man that only wants to be superior than woman. Kimmel stated that men are afraid to be called and to be seen as feminine that they put a mask to “remove” their feminine side. And in this case, the sole purpose of that website is to hide their sissiness and to prove that they are the definition of man, which we all know isn’t true. 

Moreover, Manicom said while interviewing them he realized that they all had normal jobs and normal lives. They were not “crazy”. They just had crazy ideas about how they wanted to “rule the world”. This group really proves to us how thinking you have the power over anybody can lead to irrational thinking and behavior. Also, this sort of bonding they have, Kilmartin would call this acquaintances. They are just buddies that meet and talk about specific topics. No actual “emotion” and “intimacy” are shown within them. (Kilmartin). That kind of relationship is toxic and lead to no real friendship. Furthermore, what’s also shocking is that this group is from Montreal. We are here thinking that multiculturalism and equality are 100% supported, but sadly it is not. That is why we need more people like Jay M. to talk about important subjects like the Alt-Right because they are preventing women to reach their great potential. That being said, it is sad to still hear and see that groups like them think that their ideas are valuable. What men like them need to do is face the truth that they’re too scared to admit that they are miserable without us women.

On March 3rd, we have had a visit from Jay Marquis-Manicom to talk about the thesis “From the Red Pill to ‘White Genocide’: An Ethnography of the Alt-Right in Montreal.” It talks about a group of white males, named the “Alt-right”, who would love for Canada to go back to the way it was when white males “ruled the world”. They were like Montreal’s Neo-Nazis for White supremacy. The members consist of only male members but, they are people like us who, through various experiences of which we do not know, chose to join. I could imagine how difficult it must have been for Jay to not speak out of line with these guys. He explained that he just went along with the flow and subtly contradicted them. There were not many subjects that he touched that caught my eye until he started mentioning words that we covered in class.

First off, Jay started talking about the philosophy that the Alt-right followed as one of the four key concepts. He explained that the group believes that masculinity is important, that they are against modernization, and they view male supremacy as the better option. Then, Jay mentions the words “antifemininity”, which made me think about the text written by Kilmartin with the chapter named “Defining Men’s Studies.” In that text, Killmartin describes an antifeminine person as a person who steers clear of behaviours, interests, and personal traits that people would say are feminine (Kilmartin “Defining Men’s Studies). Therefore, we know that the group is not a big fan of showing each other their emotions. Furthermore, the text also states that many theories suggest that antifemininity is the mother brain of all the other concepts. Plus, as I learned in psychology, the way you think will influence the way you feel, and the way you feel affects the thing you do and the way you behave.

Next, Jay mentions the hierarchy system that the group has when he is describing the fourth concept “Outlook of the group”. The hierarchy system is a system in which people ranked based on the status they have. In this case, the supremacy group, of course, class women as inferior and men as superiors, which again, is probably because of bad experiences. However, since they have this social hierarchy, they cannot have close friends. Kilmartin’s text “No Man is an Island: Men in Relationships”, states that men who give in to the stereotypes of being a man are bound to suffer from loneliness and have more conflicts based on psychological intimacy (Kilmartin). Based on this claim, I highly believe that the men in the group do not have much trust between each other. They might view the others as acquaintances because they probably only see each other when it is time for a meeting, or as buddies since they share this activity. Either way, they lack the deep connection to form a strong bond between the other members.

Lastly, the demographic side of the group. The group is mostly formed of millennial men, zoomers, people who are good with computers, and gamers. What all these people have in common is that they don’t socialize, mostly because they can’t. states that in men-only groups, they will interact using insults, silence, and direct questions to show acceptance and agreement, or the opposite (Kilmartin). The way to notice the difference can be explicit, like the words used, or explicit, such as the tone of the person’s voice. I’m not sure why, but it is probably because if you are talking to someone over a computer chat, or a game chat, people judge you less. As Michael Kimmel mentions in the text “Masculinity as Homophobia”, fear makes men feel ashamed, because it is proof that they are not as manly as they pretend to be. I feel bad for them, but at the same time, I sort of understand how they feel. Society programs us to think that we need to be a certain way, and they will insult you by calling you weird for example. I take weird as a compliment, because, no one else can do what I do.