In the age of social media social justice, who is on the front lines engaging men and boys?
There’s a feminist ‘joke’ that feels all too relevant as we head toward 2024.
Why do they call them waves of feminism?
…because there’s always an undertow.
Looking around, it’s hard to deny we’re in one now. Recent losses include the rollback of Roe v. Wade, the rise of anti-feminist male influencers like Jordan Peterson and Andrew Tate, and the back-sliding of Gen Z boys and men identifying themselves as feminists. Even as feminism rises among Gen Z girls and women (at 61 percent, up from 52 percent of millennials), fewer Gen Z boys and men agree they’re feminists (at 43 percent, down from 54 percent of millennials).
There are reasons for that regression, such as political polarization and social media siloes, among others, but rarely are feminist issues and concerns being framed for men and boys through the lens of patriarchy, which makes it all too easy for them to tune out the discussion.
This wasn’t always the case. Certainly, conversations about advancing gender equity and preventing gender-based violence have been predominantly led by those impacted most (read: women and trans/nonbinary individuals), but there is a history of men in the movements for gender justice. The voices and visibility of these men continue to play an important role in reaching men who might not otherwise be engaged in the conversation, and who might otherwise seek answers for their problems and frustrations in the growing alt-right content online.
About a decade ago, we had Tony Porter, Jackson Katz and Michael Kimmel make splashes with their TED Talks. They gave us ‘a call to men’ that ‘violence against women—it’s a men’s issue’ and ‘why gender equality is good for everyone—men included’ respectively. These talks have amassed between 795,000 and 2.6 million views on YouTube alone. We turned to those leaders during the #MeToo moment in 2018 and onward (though it’s worth noting that Kimmel faces his own accusations).
For even longer, we’ve had the pro-feminist male voice of Rob Okun, a Ms. contributor who took on the leadership of Voice Male magazine in 1996 (est. 1983) and chronicled the social transformation of masculinity for more than three decades. His aim was to assist men and boys on the journey to an egalitarian manhood championing gender justice for all—following in the feminist footsteps of women who sparked the gender justice movement.
Now that these early leaders have reached their 60s and 70s, the big question is: Who will take up the task of lighting the way for boys and men aligned with feminism?
It’s going to take a village. One voice is Richard Reeves, the author of Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do about It. To his credit, he doesn’t frame his arguments as zero-sum—that if girls/women are gaining, boys/men are losing—but he still doesn’t build an explicitly feminist argument. Justin Baldoni comes close with his Man Enough platform (and TED Talk, of course).
There is a history of men in the movements for gender justice. The voices and visibility of these men continue to play an important role in reaching men who might not otherwise be engaged in the conversation.
My own organization wants to do our part. Next Gen Men (est. 2014) is a small-but-mighty Canadian nonprofit organization working to change the way we see, act and think about masculinity among youth, in communities and at workplaces.
In 2020, Rob reached out to me on the heels of our own one-off zine publishing project with the idea of taking over Voice Male magazine to continue covering critical issues relevant to men’s growth and health while cataloguing the damaging effects of men’s isolation and violence.
In inheriting Voice Male, our aim is to refresh the brand, modernize and expand its distribution, while staying true to the 40-year legacy of reinforcing the role of boys and men in gender justice. We will share our own learnings and unlearnings from our work with youth, in the community, and at male-dominant workplaces—but we also want to spotlight and amplify the voices of this village, and the intersections and complexities that come up when tackling the intersecting and overlapping systems of patriarchy, white supremacy, settler colonialism and capitalism. We want to be a magazine that both experienced advocates and curious newcomers are excited to receive and read. We want to be the selected bedside reading material of the men allied with people of all genders toward a feminist future.
"What Rémi and I both experienced stems from the deeply felt realization shared by many boys: that growing up means fitting in with the expectations of what it means to be a real man."#VoiceMaleMaghttps://t.co/WslhQ9LMV6
— Voice Male Magazine (@voicemalemag) September 4, 2023
The pro-feminist future needs more publications like Ms.—especially in light of the recent uncertainty around Jezebel in the U.S. and the cessation of Shameless in Canada. We believe Voice Male is one of them. Its preservation and growth are essential to putting forth a narrative that counters the troubling undertow of Peterson and Tate and points to answers within the tearing down of patriarchy, not the rebuilding of it.
With your support, we can ride that next wave of feminism toward a future where boys and men feel less pain, and cause less harm. I hope you join us!
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U.S. democracy is at a dangerous inflection point—from the demise of abortion rights, to a lack of pay equity and parental leave, to skyrocketing maternal mortality, and attacks on trans health. Left unchecked, these crises will lead to wider gaps in political participation and representation. For 50 years, Ms. has been forging feminist journalism—reporting, rebelling and truth-telling from the front-lines, championing the Equal Rights Amendment, and centering the stories of those most impacted. With all that’s at stake for equality, we are redoubling our commitment for the next 50 years. In turn, we need your help, Support Ms. today with a donation—any amount that is meaningful to you. For as little as $5 each month, you’ll receive the print magazine along with our e-newsletters, action alerts, and invitations to Ms. Studios events and podcasts. We are grateful for your loyalty and ferocity.
