building on May 22, 2021 in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Credit: Stephen Maturen/Getty
If you follow conservative politics, you know that the state of masculinity in America has been a hot topic this past year.
Republicans like Josh Hawley, a senator from Missouri and a star of the New Right, have made masculinity a signature issue. In a recent speech at the National Conservatism Conference, for example, Hawley argued that the progressive left is trying to “deconstruct” the American man. That’s quite a statement, and whether you agree with it or not, it’s crucial to grapple with its appeal and how it’s shaping our politics.
I reached out to David French, a senior editor at The Dispatch — a center-right publication that’s been critical of the Trumpist turn in conservatism — and now a contributing writer for the Atlantic, for the latest episode of Vox Conversations. French tracks conservative politics as closely as anyone, and recently wrote about what he […]
As women becoming increasingly empowered within society that society, which is one of male dominance and “male” values and hierarchy, is, and will, and must change, reflecting more “feminine” values, which include nurture, relationship, and concern for children. To some extent, if you take the western archetype of “male” to its extreme you end up with “killer”, as it is all based on dominance. Look at the movies and see it everywhere idealized. I wish more men would realize that “feminism” is “humanism”, and the liberation women seek is also about liberation for men from damaging, life-denying, endless “warrior” images that traumatize and deny so many life-affirming parts of being a human being that are beyond “being a man”.
I meant to offer this article from MS Magazine as part of my comment.
“It’s as if the overwhelmingly male make-up of the violent mob is seen as unremarkable, so obvious and unexceptional as not to require further explanation. This is mistaken. The 86 percent male participation rate in the Capitol riot criminality offers important insights not only into the insurrection, but also into the cultural politics of Trumpism.”
https://msmagazine.com/2022/01/05/white-men-insurrection-january-6-masculinity-trump/
Projection makes perception.
One of the greatest examples of what is called masculinity that I can recall, was a physical therapy client I had, that was wearing pink sparkly fingernail polish.
I smiled at him and said “nice color” he said “thank you, my four year old daughter loves painting them.” In that moment, I saw confident strength,
which any person, of any walk of life has a choice of practicing.