A Facebook account belonging to Alek Minassian, the man accused of driving a van into pedestrians, killing 10 and injuring 15, allegedly alluded to Isla Vista killer Elliot Rodger and the “Incel Rebellion” before Monday’s carnage.
Facebook recently confirmed to Vice that the post in question was made from Minassian’s account. The outlet cautioned that it’s unclear whether the 25-year-old is the one who made the post.
Minassian appeared in a Toronto courtroom Tuesday morning and was charged with 10 counts of murder and 13 counts of attempted murder. The suspect’s father was at the hearing and was spotted leaving the courthouse in tears, according to MacLean’s.
Minassian will remain in custody. Another hearing was scheduled for May 10,
“The Incel Rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys! All hail the Supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger!”
READ More: ‘Pure carnage’: 9 dead, 16 injured after van mows down pedestrians on busy sidewalk; suspect in custody
For reference, “incel” is short for involuntary celibate, a controversial ideology that gained popularity on social media platforms like Reddit and 4chan. The men that frequent these boards express hatred toward virile men, begrudgingly called “Chads,” and “Stacys,” the women interested in them.
An ever-present theme in these online groups is a hatred for women and feminism in addition to fervent rape apologism.
Reddit has been widely criticized for giving these controversial groups a platform. In November 2017, Reddit banned r/Incels—a subreddit boasting 40,000 members—as they began a sitewide crackdown on subreddits that promoted violence.
“Communities focused on this content and users who post such content will be banned from the site,” Reddit told The New York Times in a statement. “As of Nov. 7, r/Incels has been banned for violating this policy.”
It’s worth noting that this particular subreddit supposedly referred to Elliot Rodger as “Saint Rodger.” On May 23, 2014, Rodger, 22, fatally stabbed his three male roommates before opening fire at a sorority house near the University of California, Santa Barbara, killing two, and shooting dead a male student at a nearby deli. Rodger fatally shot himself following a shootout with police.
Before arriving at the sorority house, Rodger recorded a YouTube video and sent out a manifesto. In it, he explained that he’s carrying out the slaying to punish women for rejecting him.
The BBC reported that Reddit banned another incel-friendly board, r/Malecel, on Tuesday.
Authorities have yet to determine a motive for Monday’s deadly incident, according to the Independent.
“Obviously all Canadians continue and will continue to have questions about why this happened, what could possibly be the motive behind it,”Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
[Featured Image: Alek Minassian/LinkedIn; Elliot Rodger/Youtube video screengrab]
