MONTRÉAL — Universities and junior colleges across Quebec are launching a new campaign to counter the rise of male influencers.
The bilingual strategy is part of the third phase of the campaign entitled “Consent is Key,” led by Concordia University researcher and author Léa Clermont-Dion. It takes aim at alpha male influencers who are spreading a message that trivializes sexual violence, said Clermont-Dion, who is urging the government to prioritize the issue as a growing concern.
In a large-scale survey of people at six Quebec universities, one in three reported experiencing at least one form of sexual violence since they started classes, committed by another person at the school.
Clermont-Dion says alpha male influencers are also becoming more prominent in public discourse; although, there is not yet any empirical data in Quebec showing whether young people are buying into the messaging.
“This is because it has not been a government priority to study this issue in recent years, so we rely on data from elsewhere,” Clermont-Dion said in an interview.
“However, through our work at the university and elsewhere with research groups, we see a proliferation of masculinist influencers who target or end up in the digital ecosystem of young Quebecers. Yes, there is an increase in masculinist influencers who are more mainstream.”
For those who study what is known as the manosphere subculture, she said one thing is clear: there is a rise in the normalization of masculinist discourse. “The more masculinist discourse trivializes sexual violence, the less victims will want to seek help, ask to be heard, or try to find processes that suit them,” Clermont-Dion said.
She noted there are “one-stop shops” in junior colleges and universities for victims of sexual violence who want an alternative to criminal proceedings to file a complaint.
“We can’t say that everyone who subscribes to masculinist discourse is violent,” Clermont-Dion said. However, the consequences of sexual violence are minimized and there is a tendency to denigrate the #MeToo movement. Clermont-Dion has concerns about the impact this may have, especially on young people’s intimate lives.
Influencers get their message across to young people by convincing them they have something to gain from it.
“In recent years, we have seen influencers who are more like coaches: sports coaches, life coaches. So, the goal is to provide a lifestyle or guide for men who want to empower themselves through sports,” said Clermont-Dion, who is also an associate professor at Concordia University in Montreal.
The influencer will first attract fans who like their content. Then, the influencer will convey masculinist messages to them. “There are also other types of influencers who are perhaps more focused on how to make money,” Clermont-Dion said.
Also popular are so-called seduction coaches. “They tell young men how to seduce women. And in this type of discourse, they tell these young men, ‘You shouldn’t be with a girl who has had more than five boyfriends.'”
Clermont-Dion says this creates a double standard that encourages people to judge women more harshly than men, but it can strike a chord with young people who are looking for life advice.
Andrew Tate, a popular influencer whose videos have been viewed billions of times, touches on all three categories of coaching (sports, money, seduction). His controversial opinions can therefore gain traction with many people, such as when he suggested that marital rape should not be considered rape because there is consent within the couple.
Sexual assault is a criminal offence in Canada.
Clermont-Dion points out that people on social media are all the more vulnerable to masculinist misinformation because news content is blocked on these platforms. She gives a concrete example of misinformation circulating in the manosphere: videos claiming that men risk being emasculated if they drink tap water because women urinate in the water, and therefore tap water contains estrogen.
On the other hand, 75 per cent of young Quebecers believe myths that question the credibility of women who are victims of sexual assault, according to data from the UQAM Research Chair on gender-based and sexual violence in higher education.
“I find this data shocking,” Clermont-Dion said. “It makes me question things, it worries me, and I think we have failed in our educational efforts.”
To combat sexual violence in educational settings, the campaign organizers are distributing a video designed to deconstruct the impact of masculinist discourse among young people. They have also created an educational guide for high school, junior college, and university teachers. Influencers who speak to young people will also participate by spreading the campaign’s message on their platforms.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 26, 2026.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
Katrine Desautels, The Canadian Press
