148. An Act of Terror

This week we have had a mass killing in Toronto. In the evening following the attack a friend and I chatted about how the killings would be portrayed. I made the comment that if the killer is white, then it will be a mental health issue, if he was a person of colour then it would be terrorism. So, as it turns out the man who used a vehicle as a weapon to kill mostly women, was white. As expected the discussion surrounding the man has not included terrorism.

It was terrorism.

The killer acknowledged and honoured a man who in 2014 conducted a rampage that killed six and injured fourteen. While the honoured man killed women and men, his rage was at women. The driver of the van identified himself as Incel – Involuntary Celibate – this has become a term that men loosely gather around. If we were talking any other specific ideology we would be using the term terrorism. The gathering is as organized as any other extremist group that we identify. Incels, are misogynistic and promote rape culture. I would hazard a guess that it is mostly white men who feel entitled that identify as Incel.

I have provided a link below for your own research:

http://www.bodyforwife.com/incels-are-a-hate-group-promoting-rape-and-murder/

Why do I call it an act of terror? Simply put, I believe the actions of the man was intended to strike fear in the core of every woman. He apparently targeted woman in this rampage. He identified one mass killer as a hero, and no doubt emulated him. And unlike the shootings on Parliament Hill in 2014, this attack actually seemed planned.

I write this for a number of reasons. We Christians who enjoy being righteously indignant at the sins of the world must not remain silent about this event, this group, and rape culture. In particular, I am calling on my brothers in Christ, to speak out against such violence. As always, I urge you to have the conversation with your sons, their friends, your friends, and others, that rape culture is our issue. We must stand against it.

Collectively, we must consider that when any woman is in fear of being assaulted by a man, that we have failed. We must acknowledge that we are losing in the efforts to end a culture that promotes rape and other forms of violence against women. Recently, in conversation with a friend of mine, she acknowledged that there is the expectation on dates that women ‘put out.’ We have failed.

Further, we also must not allow the discussion regarding the killing of ten and injuring of fourteen in Toronto become a discussion about mental health. While I am an advocate for mental health services, this is different. This was calculated, this was thought out, this was terror. To allow this conversation to drift into the ‘mental health’ dialogue excuses the man’s actions, does a disservice to those managing mental illnesses, and legitimizes the violence visited upon women.

We have allowed the killings at École Polytechnique in 1989 to remain as a mental health issue. Again, that was a deliberate, planned assault on women. An act of terror. Yet, with the exception of a few articles, it is not acknowledged as such.

While Toronto should be in our thoughts and prayers, those are really not enough. I do urge you to pray that those who are grieving find the comfort and peace of God. But those prayers are meaningless, unless we take action. So once again, the talking points regarding rape culture:

1. Women deserve the agency over their own bodies to be honoured.

2. Rape, and the associated violence is not about sex.

3. Rape, and the associated violence stems from the sense of entitlement by men.

4. Ultimately, rape and the associated violence is aimed at subjugating women.