Elliot Rodger killed 6 people and injured 13 others over the weekend
because he hated women, and he subscribed to the entitlement afforded to him
because of his race, gender, and class. That is all.
Naturally, I’m losing my shit over people defending Rodger’s actions and
those calling him mentally ill. It is safe to assume anyone who decides to
solve any problem with violence let alone mass violence they aren’t using the
same operating program the rest of us are using. That said a lot of people with
mental illness are not violent and do not harm anyone.
Obviously, I read Kimmel’s Angry
White Men, last week, which is particularly poignant given Rodger’s mass
shooting. Kimmel’s book includes a chapter on mass acts of violence committed
by angry white young men who feel slighted because their entitlement has been
challenged. That is exactly what happened here.
So what exactly was the slight that Rodger felt? Oh, his right to women’s
bodies was violated. He is owed sex and love from women because…he’s a white
dude? I don’t know I’ve never understood this line of logic. This feeling that
you are owed anything but a shove down. I guess my class is showing.
Rodger wrote a “manifesto” about his plight. It is full of hate
particularly directed at women and people of color. He also has tied to Mens’
Rights Activists (MRAs) and Pick Up Artists (PUA), which is completely evident
in the language he uses in the manifesto. He also released videos including Elliot Rodger’s Retribution. Some of the
lowlights:
“For the last eight years of my life, ever since I’ve hit puberty, I’ve been forced to endure an existence of loneliness, rejection, and unfulfilled desires. All because girls have never been attracted to me. Girls gave their affection and sex and love to other men, but never to me.”
The entire thing is all about his entitlement. Women, are just objects to have as status symbols.
“You girls have never been attracted to me. I don’t know why you girls aren’t attracted to me. But I will punish you all for it. It’s an injustice, a crime, because I don’t know what you don’t see in me. I’m the perfect guy. Yet you throw yourselves at all these obnoxious men. Instead of men. The supreme gentleman. I will punish all of you for it [laughter].”
Well, I’m glad he states he’s a gentleman because judging from his
actions and associates (MRAs) I would never have put it together.
“On the day of retribution, I am going to enter the hottest sorority house of UCSB [University of California, Santa Barbara], and I will slaughter every single spoiled, stuck-up, blonde slut I see inside of there. All of those girls that I’ve desired so much. They would have all rejected me and looked down upon me as an inferior man if I ever made a sexual advance towards them. While they throw themselves at these obnoxious brutes. I’ll take great pleasure in slaughtering all of you. You will finally see that I’m the superior one. The true Alpha Male.”
The points from the passage above that are particularly striking because
of his presumed victimization. For example, “if I ever” strongly implies the rejection is in his head. Thus, the
women are just a stand in for his assumed rejection. Additionally, we get to
see once again his view that women are just objects to possess.
We know that MRAs and PUAs encourage violence against women through their
rhetoric. They are hate groups. They hate women. There are a lot of articles
about
Rodger
now.
It has also come out that in addition to hatred for women, Rodger hates
interracial couples and is racist.
Of course, more misogynists have come out saying that what Rodger did was
wrong, but hey what do you expect if women aren’t perpetually sexual available
for any white man who demands it. The actual
quote is “more people will die unless you give men sexual options.”
Finally, I want to end with a truly depressing
situation: there was another mass shooting targeting
women over the weekend. But there was also a hashtag created #YesAllWomen.
These are two articles with some
of the
best. The hashtage is an interesting read and very depressing, but there is
some power in saying it; it being the violence and misogyny focused on women
everyday, yes all women everyday.
