The first online community to use the term " incel " was started in 1993 when a Canadian university student known only by her first name , Alana , created a website in order to discuss her sexual inactivity with others . The website , titled " Alana 's Involuntary Celibacy Project " , was used by people of all genders to share their thoughts and experiences . In 1997 , she started a mailing list on the topic that used the abbreviation INVCEL , later shortened to " incel " , for " anybody of any gender who was lonely , had never had sex or who had n't had a relationship in a long time " . During her college career and after , she realized she was queer and became more comfortable with her identity . She stopped participating in her online project around 2000 and gave the site to a stranger . When speaking about the website in 2018 , Alana said , " It definitely was n't a bunch of guys blaming women for their problems . That 's a pretty sad version of this phenomenon that 's happening today . Things have changed in the last 20 years . " When she read about the 2014 Isla Vista killings , and the way parts of the incel subculture glorified the perpetrator , Elliot Rodger , she wrote , " Like a scientist who invented something that ended up being a weapon of war , I ca n't uninvent this word , nor restrict it to the nicer people who need it . " She expressed regret at the change in usage from her original intent of creating an " inclusive community " for people of all genders who were sexually deprived due to social awkwardness , marginalization , or mental illness . She has since started a new project , " Love Not Anger " , which she describes as " a project to research how lonely people might find respectful love , instead of being stuck in anger "
2014 Isla Vista killings
2014 Isla Vista killings
Incel