Responding to Reddit Incels

What is the right response to a sexist comment from an anonymous internet user?

By Elizabeth Zanmiller

The University of Minnesota has a big presence on social media, but Reddit is unlike the others. Although not officially affiliated with the U, it allows students to come together online to ask questions, discuss campus issues, and freely state their opinions. The communities are reviewed by moderators, rather than by Reddit staff, meaning anything goes as long as the moderators approve. At the bottom of several posts on the University of Minnesota Reddit, you will often see misogynistic comments from incels with a large number of downvotes. Incel, short for involuntary celibate, usually implies it is a male who blames women for their celibacy and has generally a demeaning attitude towards women. Usually, a few people will have replied to the sexist comment, but this seems to only fuel the incel. With the level of anonymity offered by the internet, it is difficult to hold people accountable for their comments, leading to the dilemma of determining the most effective way to respond.

On one hand, it is important to hold these unacceptable behaviors accountable in order to foster change. But on the other, attention fuels the incels on Reddit and the trolls on other websites. The best thing one can do in response to these comments is downvote, report, and keep scrolling even if the natural instinct is to argue back. Although it is difficult, it will send the comment to the bottom of the comment section and result in fewer views. It is our job to respond to these comments negatively and appropriately, not in a way that fuels more hate and increases the attention given to these incels.