It's their “traditional” masculinity that impedes their ability to form friendships and that has broken down the family as well - because women no longer have to put up with the shit they used to because they couldn't work. You’ve even spoken to some of this, but then act like people who don’t want to be treated badly are the ones causing the problems. 🙄
Young men’s mental health is in a worrisome state. Their bravado masks deep insecurities, depression, and frequent thoughts of suicide. Men in the Man Box in the US and UK are statistically significantly more likely to meet a screening standard for depression than men outside the Man Box. Furthermore, all young men’s rates of suicidal ideation are troubling, with particularly high rates among men in the Man Box (the rules of traditional masculinity).
Assuming that lesbians or even feminists are all hostile to men is just pathetic and a way to defensively not engage with the actual issues at hand which begin with the fact that patriarchy hurts everyone, even men. Are you honestly advocating for indoctrinating a child into some particular way of being, rather than allowing him to grow up to be who he actually is? Because that’s killing boys and men too.
Children are constantly bombarded with gender-based expectations from society and from the media, and they are reinforced by both peers and adults alike. Sometimes that reinforcement is coercive and comes in the form of teasing or bullying for failing to comply with norms. Boys are more likely to be subjected to this kind of censure, sometimes with terrible consequences. A study by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) found that “20% of gender non-conforming students reported attempting suicide compared to 7% of gender-conforming students.
The data is bad for both sexes, but it seems to be worse for males.”
