Men and feminism

The relationship between men and feminism has been complex and intricate. Male discourse on women in society dates back to Wikipedia:Classical Greece. Well-known examples include Wikipedia:Aristophanes' Wikipedia:Lysistrata and Wikipedia:Euripides' Medea, and the position of women is addressed by Wikipedia:Plato in the Republic. Since the 19th century, men have taken part in significant cultural and political responses to Wikipedia:feminism within each "wave" of the movement. For example, feminists and abolitionists, the latter working to end the slave trade, found common ground as they worked to promote the rights of women and slaves respectively.

One popular taxonomy has been offered by the American sociologist Wikipedia:Michael Kimmel, who in the 1990s classified men's responses as falling into Wikipedia:antifeminist, Wikipedia:pro-feminist, or Wikipedia:masculist/Wikipedia:masculinist categories, each largely differing in their view of masculinity. Kimmel himself belongs to his profeminist category.

There is some small controversy over whether men can be feminists (WP); hence the term pro-feminism (WP).

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History

The 18th century saw male philosophers attracted to issues of human rights, and men such as the Wikipedia:Marquis de Condorcet championed women's education. Liberals, such as the utilitarian Wikipedia:Jeremy Bentham, demanded equal rights for women in every sense, as people increasingly came to believe that women were treated unfairly under the law.

In the 19th century, there was also an awareness of women's struggle. The British legal historian, Sir Wikipedia:Henry Maine, criticized the inevitability of patriarchy in his Ancient Law (1861). In 1866, Wikipedia:John Stuart Mill, author of Wikipedia:The Subjection of Women, presented a women's petition to the British parliament, and supported an amendment to the 1867 Reform Bill. Although his efforts focused on the problems of married women, it was an acknowledgment that marriage for Victorian women was predicated upon a sacrifice of liberty, rights, and property. His involvement in the women's movement stemmed from his long-standing friendship with Wikipedia:Harriet Taylor, whom he eventually married.

Pro-feminist history

In the Athenian comic poet Wikipedia:Aristophanes’ play Wikipedia:Lysistrata, women engage in a sex strike to bring about the end of the Wikipedia:Peloponnesian war. Similarly, in The Republic, Wikipedia:Plato suggests an ‘ideal’ state in which women would receive equal education and opportunities to participate in activities of the state, at least within the guardian class. During the Wikipedia:Renaissance Wikipedia:Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa wrote La Supériorité du sexe feminin (Superiority of the female sex). Throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the majority of pro-feminist authors emerged from France, including Wikipedia:Denis Diderot, Paul Henri d’Holbach, and Charles Louis de Montesquieu. Montesquieu introduced female characters, like Roxana in Persian Letters, who subverted patriarchal systems, and represented his arguments against despotism.

19th-century

In 1849, women were refused the right to participate at the Wikipedia:World Anti-Slavery Convention in London. Supporters of the women attending argued that it was hypocritical to forbid women and men from sitting together at this convention to end slavery; they cited similar segregationist arguments in America that were used to separate whites and blacks. When women were still denied to join in the proceedings, abolitionists Wikipedia:William Lloyd Garrison, Wikipedia:Charles Lenox Remond, Nathanial P. Rodgers, and Wikipedia:Henry Stanton, all elected to sit silently with the women.

One argument against female participation, both at the World Anti-Slavery Convention, and commonly in the nineteenth century, was the suggestion that women were ill-constituted to assume male responsibilities. Pro-feminist Wikipedia:Thomas Wentworth Higginson argued against this, stating:

I do not see how any woman can avoid a thrill of indignation when she first opens her eyes to the fact that it is really contempt, not reverence, that has so long kept her sex from an equal share of legal, political, and educational rights…[a woman needs equal rights] not because she is man’s better half, but because she is his other half. She needs them, not as an angel, but as a fraction of humanity.

During the end of the 19th century, Greenwich Village radicals attempted to institute feminist ideals into their lives by adopting new kinds of relationships with women. They embraced believed feminist objectives, like women’s Wikipedia:sexual autonomy and access to Wikipedia:birth control.

Contemporary

In 2001 a Wikipedia:Gallup poll found that only 20% of American men considered themselves feminist, with 75% saying they were not. A Wikipedia:CBS Poll in 2009 found 24% of men in America claim the term "feminist" is an insult. 4 in 5 men refuse to identify as feminist, but when it's definition is given the number fell to 2 in 5. An increasing amount of men said that feminism had improved their lives in comparison to polls taken in 1983 and 1999 with an unprecedented, but marginal majority of 47% agreeing. Although 60% believe that a strong women's movement is no longer needed. A Wikipedia:YouGov Poll of Britain in 2010 found that only 16% of men described themselves as feminist with 54% stating they were not and 8% specifically claiming to be antifeminist.

Today some men's profeminist groups include:

• MAN for the ERA - Men Allied Nationally for the Equal Rights Amendment
• NOMAS - the National Organization for Men against Sexism
• RAVEN - Rape And Violence End Now in St. Louis
• MOVE - Men Overcoming Violence in San Francisco

Men's liberation movement

The Wikipedia:men's liberation movement began in the early 1970s as consciousness-raising groups to help men free themselves from the limits of sex roles. Proponents of men’s liberation argued that male bonding is a mechanism to conform men’s identities to a single sense of masculinity, which reinforces patriarchy. In lieu of such bonding, the men’s liberation movement called for open acknowledgment of the costs of masculinity: men’s entrapment in their fixed role as the breadwinner of the nuclear family and the taboo against men expressing emotions. Most significantly, this movement made it acceptable for men to be open about their emotions while maintaining their masculinity.

The distinction between gender and biological sex originated during the men's liberation movement. The previously accepted link between the biological male sex and the social construction of masculinity was seen by scholars as a limitation on men’s collaboration with the feminist movement. This sharply contrasted with sex role theory which viewed gender as something determined by biological differences between the sexes. Other key elements of the men's liberation movement were the ideas that genders are relational and each cannot exist without the other, and that gender as a whole is a social construction and not a biological imperative. Thus, second-wave profeminist writers were able to explore the interactions between social practices and institutions, and ideas of gender.

Men's liberation's engagement with race

Racial differences have historically stratified the men’s liberation movement and such divisions still remain problematic today. Some profeminist scholars argue that racism within American society has emasculated non-white men. For example, black men are perceived to lack control over their innate sexual aggression. Within this ideological framework black men are presented as hyper-sexual to an animalistic degree; they therefore represent beasts, not men. Asian-Americans have been emasculated in an opposite way: they have been portrayed as desexualized, unattractive, small, wimpy, intelligent, and devious. (See: Stereotypes of Asian Men)

Men's liberation's engagement with gay liberation

Second-wave Wikipedia:pro-feminism paid increased attention to issues of sexuality, particularly the relationship between homosexual men and Wikipedia:hegemonic masculinity. This shift led to more cooperation between the Wikipedia:men's liberation and Wikipedia:Gay Liberation movements. In part this cooperation arose because masculinity was then understood to be a Wikipedia:social construction, and as a response to the universalization of ‘men’ seen in previous men’s movements. This allowed for the men’s liberation movement to analyze the conditions under which society becomes less tolerant of homosexuality.

Profeminist writers have identified several hypotheses for explaining the origin of Wikipedia:homophobia. These hypotheses rely on the idea that gender is a binary system where deviation from either gender norm is viewed as socially unacceptable. Such a system is argued to lead to Wikipedia:heterosexism, as a way of preserving the binary division.

Arguments about male participation in feminism

Introduction

There is significant debate over whether or not men can be feminists. While some scholars argue that men cannot be feminists because of the intrinsic differences between the sexes; others argue that men’s identification with the feminist movement is necessary for furthering the feminist cause.

Arguments against male participation in feminism

Some female feminists argue that men cannot be feminists simply because they are not women. During First-wave feminism, the bourgeois leaders of the feminist movement often portrayed men as the all-powerful, oppressive enemy . This view actually reinforced sexist ideology that discouraged men from supporting the feminist cause, let alone identify themselves as feminists. Unfortunately, as men have come to support the feminist cause, they have experienced a backlash from women and men alike.

Some feminist scholars argue that the privileges inherently granted to men prevent men from identifying with true feminist struggles, thus making it impossible for them to truly identify with feminists. Feminist scholars have also declared that men’s historical control of language has held women back from defining their place in society . Thus, while men may claim to be feminists, some scholars agree that being feminist is more than being in intellectual agreement with theoretic principles. They argue that men can support the feminist movement but not define themselves as feminists because they have never been women and do not experience the world as women have.

Arguments for male participation in feminism

Some feminist writers maintain that identifying as a feminist is the strongest stand men can take in the struggle against sexism. They have argued that men should be allowed, or even encouraged, to participate in the feminist movement. Male participation would reflect a ‘male affirmative’ position. In this context, male affirmative simply refers to a belief in the potential and basic humanity of the male gender.

A common idea supporting men’s inclusion as ‘feminists’ is that excluding men from the feminist movement labels it as solely a female task, which scholars argue is itself sexist . They assert that until men share equal responsibility for struggling to end sexism, the feminist movement will reflect the very sexist contradiction it wishes to eradicate.

Another point made in support of men’s participation in the feminist movement revolves around the idea that rigid sex roles also hurt men. For instance, men of lower socioeconomic classes and marginalized racial groups are oppressed by the notion that masculinity is linked to economic power. Some have gone on to say that these men’s attempts to exercise their nonexistent power results in greater gender conflict, insecurity and violence.

One benefit of male participation in the feminist movement is that it is often easier for men to engage and confront their male peers than it is for women to do the same. Scholars claim that since men are primarily responsible for sexist oppression, they are in a better position to combat it themselves. Again, most feminists are careful about this point, emphasizing that the bulk of the work, particularly leadership roles, in the feminist movement is more appropriate for women. There remains a notable debate about what those men involved in the feminist movement should call themselves. Typically, they are referred to by one of three terms: profeminist, anti-sexist, or simply feminist.

Men use the term ‘anti-sexist’ as a reaction to feminists’ claims that men cannot call themselves feminists. However, its use is sometimes considered passive and contrary, instead of making a more powerful assertion about what men support.

The term ‘profeminist’ occupies the middle ground in this semantic debate, because it offers a degree of closeness to feminism without co-opting the term. Also, the prefix ‘pro’ characterizes the term as more proactive and positive (as opposed to anti-sexist). There has been some debate regarding the use of the hyphen (identifying as a ‘Wikipedia:pro-feminist’ as opposed to a profeminist) claiming that it distances the term too much from feminism proper. Nonetheless, 'profeminist' seems to be the term of choice at this time.

Male feminism

Historically a number of men have engaged with feminism. In 1866, Wikipedia:John Stuart Mill (author of “Wikipedia:The Subjection of Women”), presented a women’s petition to the British parliament and supported an amendment to the 1867 Reform Bill. Others have lobbied and campaigned against feminism. Today, academics like Wikipedia:Michael Flood, Wikipedia:Michael Messner, and Wikipedia:Michael Kimmel are involved with Wikipedia:men's studies and Wikipedia:pro-feminist.

There is debate over whether or not men can be feminists. While some scholars argue that men cannot be feminists because of the intrinsic differences between the sexes, others argue that men’s identification with the feminist movement is necessary for furthering the feminist causes. A number of feminist writers maintain that identifying as a feminist is the strongest stand men can take in the struggle against sexism against women. They have argued that men should be allowed, or even encouraged, to participate in the feminist movement. Other female feminists argue that men cannot be feminists simply because they are not women. They claim that men are granted inherent privileges that prevent them from identifying with feminist struggles and thus make it impossible for them to identify with feminists.

A common idea supporting men’s inclusion as ‘feminists’ is that excluding men from the feminist movement labels it as solely a female task, which scholars argue is sexist in itself. They assert that until men share equal responsibility for struggling to end sexism against women, the feminist movement will reflect the very sexist contradiction it wishes to eradicate. The term ‘profeminist’ occupies the middle ground in this semantic debate, because it offers a degree of closeness to feminism without co-opting the term. Also, the prefix ‘pro’ characterizes the term as more proactive and positive. There has been some debate regarding the use of the hyphen (identifying as a ‘Wikipedia:pro-feminist’ as opposed to a profeminist) claiming that it distances the term too much from feminism proper. Nonetheless, 'profeminist' seems to be the term of choice at this time.

Men confronting violence against women

An area of feminist social work in which some pro-feminist men have participated is preventing violence against women, and supporting its survivors. Anti-violence activists work in shelters for battered women, counseling survivors, rehabilitating perpetrators and spreading awareness of the issue. Many male activists support these anti-violence campaigns on two strong fronts: first, that violence against women concerns all people, regardless of gender; and secondly, that more attention should be paid to the social environments that produce perpetrators. Activists have also analyzed the cultural factors that contribute to violence against women.

The Wikipedia:White Ribbon Campaign was founded in response to the Wikipedia:École Polytechnique Massacre in Wikipedia:Montreal, Wikipedia:Quebec, Wikipedia:Canada. The movement aims to spread awareness about the issue of violence against women by educating men about the problem.

Men confronting rape

Although men's participation in anti-Wikipedia:rape activism in American campaigns is still uncommon, some men have proved valuable allies in their positions in shelters, support groups, and rape response teams. Some male activists claim that their efforts are met with mistrust and anger. Much literature about male anti-rape activists involves men experiencing epiphanies about the emotional and psychological impact rape inflicts on its victims. Scholars typically claim that in order to end rape and violence against women, men must become aware of these issues, otherwise there is no hope for stopping rape.

In addition to the struggles men face as a part of their work with anti-rape activism, many men that choose to speak out against rape report social costs, specifically that they are viewed as ‘not masculine.’ Men's deviation from Wikipedia:hegemonic masculinity can lead to exclusion by their male peers. Male activists claim that unless masculinity can be redefined to include both caring for women and being vulnerable to emotional issues such as rape, men will continue to avoid taking action against rape.

Men confronting pornography

Some pro-feminist scholars believe that the portrayal of sexuality in pornography has contributed to the rise of sexual violence, misogyny, and the perpetuation of inequality between the sexes. They suggest that the normalization of male-dominated, violent, and degrading sexual acts has led users of pornography to incorporate violence into their own lives. Pro-feminists may assert that these trends in pornography are reflected by increased acts of sexual violence; and also contribute to normalizing Wikipedia:rape culture. As with some areas of feminism, pro-feminists may also believe that pornography reduces women and teenage girls to sex objects.

Men’s studies

Masculinity scholars have seek to broaden the academic discourse of gender through Wikipedia:men's studies. While scholars argue that most academic disciplines, except women’s studies, can be considered “men’s studies” because they claim that the content of the curriculum consists of primarily male subjects, masculinity scholars assert that men’s studies specifically analyzes men’s gendered experiences. Central to men’s studies is the understanding that “gender” does not mean “female,” the same way “race” does not mean “black.” Men’s studies are typically interdisciplinary, and incorporate the feminist conception that “the personal is political.” Masculinity scholars strive to contribute to the existing dialogue about gender created through women’s studies.

Mythopoetic men's movement

The mythopoets crafted a masculinist response to feminism which began in America in the 1980s. The movement selectively used mythology and fairy tales to seek refuge from the perceived ‘feminization’ of modern society with an emphasis on ‘deep masculinity.’ Mythopoets held that all men inherently possessed a ‘deep masculinity’ that has been repressed by over-dominant mothers. In order to recover ‘deep masculinity,’ Mythopoets attended escapist retreats. During these retreats, men attempt to reconnect with nature through initiation rites and ceremonial behavior. Mythopoets often credit American Indians as prime examples of such customs, although the content of the retreats bears little resemblance to any actual American Indian practices.

Mythopoets claim to be concerned with what they see as harmful effects that the modernization of American society has had on men. They argue that as America became industrialized, men were forced from the home and into factories, thereby leaving boys with only female role models. The most prominent effects of this lack of guidance were the destruction of nurturing bonds between men and the limitation of emotional expression by men. Mythopoets strove to counter this by reclaiming emotional power from women. Much Mythopoetic literature takes the form of nostalgic longing for a time when deep masculinity was more accessible.

A founding mythopoet is poet Wikipedia:Robert Bly. Bly’s work includes “Wikipedia:Iron John: A Book About Men” in which he recounts a myth of a young prince’s quest for maturity. In Iron John, Bly argues that, although there are several powerful male characters, most men identify with the weak young prince, and that this identification demonstrates that men do not possess the power and control ascribed to them by feminists. This conception of gender dynamics is representative of the mythopoetic perspective.

Profeminist response to the mythopoetic men's movement

The profeminist men’s movement responded to the Mythopoetic movement in part by acknowledging the difficulties of contemporary masculinity. Profeminist writers sympathized with the Mythopoets’ claims that the economic and social isolation of modern American men affects the contemporary concept of masculinity. These writers understood the ways in which the increasing loss of economic autonomy made it more difficult for American men of the 20th century to satisfy their own definitions of masculinity. Many profeminist authors, however, argue that the Mythopoetic movement defines masculinity as essentially intrinsic to men and separate from women. These profeminist writers believe that this essentialist view propagates restrictive gender standards. Profeminists suggest that instead of constantly working to demonstrate how men are not women, men who truly wish to eradicate hegemonic gender standards must ally themselves with the feminist movement. Some profeminist writers see the Mythopoets' essentialist views as the expression of an emotionally-rooted anti-intellectual stance, intended to defend the movement against honest criticism from external sources.

Additionally, some profeminist scholars find much of the Mythopoetic retreats as racist misrepresentations of some aspects of Native American culture. This Mythopoetic selective viewing extends beyond Native American cultural appropriation to the mythologies of other cultures as well. The Mythopoetic call for male-centric “Zeus Power,” for example, ignores Zeus’ appearances in mythology as an incestuous rapist. Profeminists claim that by identifying themselves with these incomplete images, Mythopoets ignore the circumstances in which these cultural values evolved, and creates an unrealistic and idealized 'history' toward which its members strive.

Another perspective advanced by several feminist writers is that the mythopoetic movement was a publicity stunt to revive the career of Wikipedia:Robert Bly. This view is based on Bly’s earlier fame as a peace activist during the Vietnam War, when he advocated that men embrace their 'feminine' qualities.

Antifeminist response

Opposition to feminism comes in many forms, either criticizing feminist ideology and practice or arguing that it be restrained.

Mythopoetic/Antifeminist Male response

The Wikipedia:masculist position advocates Wikipedia:men's rights, and is controversially claimed to be the male counterpart to feminism, seeking to redress social issues facing men and boys. However, it also refers to Wikipedia:antifeminism and advocacy of male superiority and dominance. One masculinist position, associated with the Mythopoetic movement and author Wikipedia:Robert Bly, criticizes "emasculation of men by feminism," and argues that there are intrinsic differences between the sexes.

Other men have reacted to feminist claims by refusing to engage them at all, instead seeking to re-establish a more traditional masculine ideal. This movement is associated with the formation of fraternal organizations such as the Wikipedia:YMCA. Their founding is seen by some as an attempt to instill traditional masculinity and male bonding in its members.

Where anti-feminists strive to revoke women's rights, masculinists seek to further men's rights. In fact, some masculinists claim that men have been hurt by feminist advances, and that they should empower themselves by revitalizing their masculinity. This argument was also echoed in religious circles with the Wikipedia:Muscular Christianity movement. The Wikipedia:Mythopoetic movement is frequently associated with Wikipedia:Robert Bly.

Men's rights

In the early 1980s, the men’s rights campaign emerged in America in response to the men’s liberation movement. A uniting principle was the belief that men's problems were awarded less attention than women's and that any previous oppression of women had turned, or was about to turn, into oppression of men. Men’s rights activists cited men's economic burden of the traditionally male breadwinner role, men's shorter average life expectancy, and inequalities favoring women in divorce issues, custody laws, and abortion rights as evidence of men’s suffering.

The campaign has generally had the most success achieving legal reform in family law, particularly regarding child custody. Activists argue that the American judicial system discriminates against fathers in child custody hearings since mothers are typically viewed as the main caregivers. They claimed that the economic burden of the breadwinner role has made it more difficult for men to take part in child rearing, and that court decisions rarely account for this obstacle.

Some organizations, such as the Wikipedia:National Coalition of Free Men, have made efforts to examine how sex discrimination affects men. For instance, this group argues that custody rights in favor of women discriminate against men because they are based on the belief that women are naturally more nurturing and better caregivers than men. Also, in the belief that women are somehow less culpable than men, women receive gentler treatment by the justice system for the same crimes that men have committed. Thus, groups such as NCFM promote awareness, resources, support, and openings for discussion for these issues.

Profeminist responses to men’s rights

Many tenets of the men’s rights movement have been rejected by profeminists. Profeminists believe that the overarching social structure of what they see as patriarchy gives men power over women This is argued by pointing to problems with imbalanced economic and family structures, and exploitation of women. In examining women’s experiences in the workplace, profeminists claim that men retain clear advantages. Women typically earn less money for the same work, are more likely to be victims of sexual harassment, and earn fewer positions of power than men.

Profeminist scholars claim that men's anxiety surrounding divorce rights stems from an unprecedented feeling of entitlement. In the case of custody laws, profeminist supporters claim that men do not take an active role in the lives of their children until their rights are threatened by the courts. Men’s rights groups are generally seen as effective in providing self-help, emotional support, and legal advice for divorced men. However, they have also been viewed by some profeminist scholars as providing antifeminist fuel for conservative backlash against the struggle for equal rights between the genders.

See also

Wikipedia:Antifeminism Wikipedia:Feminism Wikipedia:Femininity Wikipedia:Masculinity

Wikipedia:Masculism Wikipedia:Men's liberation Wikipedia:Men's movement

Wikipedia:Pro-feminism Wikipedia:White Ribbon Campaign Wikipedia:Women's rights

Further reading

• Alan D. Berkowitz (ed.) Men and rape: theory, research, and prevention programs in higher education, issue 65 of New directions for student services, Jossey-Bass, 1994, ISBN 9780787999711.

External links

• NOMAS website
• White Ribbon Campaign website