Executive Summary 

• The birth rate in the United States has been steadily decreasing due to several societal contributors.  
• Young and middle-aged men have been struggling romantically, academically, and professionally which has exacerbated the issue.  

• Men’s perceived disenfranchisement has fueled hateful movements specifically towards women and encouraged widespread violence.  

Introduction 

The twenty-first century has seen a dramatic shift in sexual liberation for both sexes. Women have never been more empowered to have agency and pride over their sexuality. Furthermore, with dating apps being some of the most popular applications in the app store, meeting someone has never been easier, right? Contrary to what one would assume, the men in our generation are having significantly less sex than the generations before and there is a growing birth rate decline. In response to this liberation of women has been a disgruntled and violent movement of young men, incels. Despite education being more accessible than ever and the unemployment rate being low, men are unmotivated. This dangerous combination has been the perfect environment for the internet subculture known as incels. Incel culture is a rising threat to our nation’s security, labor force, and population.  

Relationships are down 

Not only is sexual intimacy at an all-time low, but in general romantic relationships have seen a steep decline. This partially has to do with the technological boom and men’s accessibility to attractive naked women on the internet has resulted in a staunch disinterest of women in the real world. Biologically speaking, the pornography addiction that has risen in the past two decades has contributed to impotence in younger men. Dating apps targeting a younger demographic such as Tinder or Bumble hinder young men’s ability to form intimate emotional connections with women. The limitless swiping has made it, so no one is ever truly satisfied with their matches and the innumerable options make women seem dispensable. However, with social anxiety on the rise in young men, these apps are much more appealing than traditional interactions with women. The lack of intimacy with women has heavily fueled the numerous variants of the incel movement. Incel meaning involuntary celibate describes a man who cannot find a romantic partner despite desiring one. These men blame women for their celibacy and are concerningly misogynistic. At their worst, incels become mass shooters such as Elliott Rodger, responsible for the 2014 Isla Vista killings.  

Lack of Education 

Somewhere along the way in the push for girls’ education, boys got left behind. As female enrollment in university increases, men’s enrollment is dwindling. When men are enrolling, there is still the issue of many of them not completing their degree.  In K-12 girls are more engaged with school while boys are struggling with motivation and concentration. Women seem increasingly more driven, and men seem increasingly more lost. There seems to be a cultural shift that doing well in school and caring about grades is a “girl thing”. Many boys have accepted school as something they simply are not that good at. Boys are also struggling more behaviorally yet studies have shown that the current methods employed by educators to help “troubled” children simply make them feel worse and ostracize them.  

Lack of Employment  

There has also been a noticeable decline in male employment across all sectors and industries. There has been a decrease in military recruitment, trade work, and white-collar jobs from men. In the workforce, there has been a decline in men working, men are also not looking for work. Blue-collar jobs are not exempt, with the skilled worker shortage only getting increasingly worse since the pandemic. All military branches have not met their recruitment goals, with many being short by the thousands.  Overall, the United States is seeing a growing population of “nilfs”, not in the labor force men, that have seemingly no desire to be.  

Conclusion 

The technological and social advancements made in this nation have seemed to result in men being left behind. The lack of encouragement in early education leaves men with little options post-graduation. Without entering the workforce, it makes it incredibly difficult to meet someone, and understandably successful educated women would want to date their equal. The incel subculture however has taken this rejection to fuel their resentment towards women. All of this has contributed to the birth rate decreasing nationwide. Millennials and Gen Z achieve traditional milestones such as moving out, owning a home, getting married, and having children much later than generations prior. There are economic factors to this but also sociopsychological factors of mass immaturity and a shift in priorities. The loneliness epidemic growing throughout America also contributes to the mental health crisis young adults in the country battling. Addressing this demographic of seemingly forgotten young men and encouraging their crucial participation in the economy and society is imperative to solving this problem. Among the many changes needed to the American education system, efforts must be made to empower young girls while simultaneously encouraging young boys and valuing their futures.