When You Struggle To Find The Me In #MeToo

The abuses are real—no doubt about that. But my own experiences with men incline me against the kind of generalizations some are making.

I have been thinking of writing this piece for some time now. Yet a concern of mine is it will come across in a way I don’t intend. Specifically, my worry is that given the nature of this topic it will be difficult for me to express my point of view without appearing unsympathetic or self-satisfied. But I have decided to move forward with it because I keep coming back to a sense that this is a point which ought to be made. So here goes.

My experience of men, from my dad to my husband to all the less significant relationships along the way, has been overwhelmingly positive. As a general rule I have felt respected, treated as an equal, and judged by the content of my character—not by my sex.

You can see how this might come across as unsympathetic. Someone might read this as an attempt on my part to pour cold water on the #MeToo momentum. Hear me out, though: I understand my experience is not everyone else’s experience, and I absolutely affirm that uncountably many women have had polar opposite experiences with men. I recognize that — as with life circumstances more generally — there is an element of…