MGTOW

MGTOW, an outgrowth of Men’s Rights Activism (MRA) and the Men’s Rights Movement (MRM), is an online movement that rejects social constructions and expectations of masculinity, especially feminist ones. These men seek to define themselves as men on their own terms—to go their own way. They deny the historic oppression of women in society and believe instead that it’s women, particularly since the rise of modern feminism, who have oppressed men. For this position, MGTOW followers claim “double standards” such as bias toward women in custody battles and false accusations of rape.

And so many followers of MGTOW seek to eliminate interactions with women from their lives, including romantic relationships and marriage, out of a sexist belief that male/female interactions only result in women abusing men, taking their money, and so on.

While those who identify as MRA believe they can actively combat “male oppression,” the MGTOW instead focuses on independence and self-preservation. MGTOW ideology argues that their philosophy is not anti-female, per se, but simply a way for men to reclaim self-ownership against an oppressive anti-male system, and that excluding women from a man’s life allows him decide his own destiny.

The MGTOW movement was formed in the early 2000s in the online manosphere by a group of posters on the XYZ forum, an MRA message board. Disliking the “PC culture” these posters began the MGTOW movement as their own backlash to what they perceive as an anti-male society. The formal foundation of MGTOW was laid during an in-person meeting between users Meiko and Ragnar in Hickory, North Carolina in October of 2004, with the latter writing the MGTOW manifesto. At the beginning, the “marriage strike”—wherein men “resist” the institution of marriage, which they believe to be oppressive—was not part of MGTOW doctrine, though it has since become one of its defining factors.

Because one of the original frustrations of the MGTOW founders was that women were allowed to participate in MRA communities, the involvement of women in MGTOW groups is forbidden. Also, being a MGTOW is not something that can be self-proclaimed and usually necessitates moving through four stages. These levels begin with “situational awareness,” progresses to rejection of long-term relationships with women, then on to a rejection of even casual hookups. Level three sees members strive to only make as much money as necessary (“economic disengagement”), and finally, on the fourth level, they reject society altogether.

Heterosexual male MGTOW believers are still attracted to women and still desire sexual activity, a subject which creates a lot of debates on their message boards. Many MGTOW members “go monk,” vowing celibacy and engaging in only masturbation for sexual relief. Because of this, many people—even other men’s rights activists—have begun referring to them as VGTOW, or Virgins Going Their Own Way.