“All Men Are the Enemy”: Feminist Movements are Never Just a Woman’s Job
Why Men Need to Hold an Equal Role in Feminist Movements
I have had my fair share of dealing with ‘feminists’ who brood in hate and firmly believe that all men are the enemy and target. This thought seems to dwell somewhere by someone in feminist movements. At the beginning of my college career, I was inclined to believe it too. But, the more I learned, participated and questioned the thought, the more I began to discredit it. The need to overpower men is establishing a matriarchal society; it’s just as equally oppressive and stagnant as a patriarchal society. Feminist movements with the goal of achieving equality, should never solely rely on women leading — but men, too.
There’s no hiding the fact that men have perpetuated oppression and patriarchal ideologies in one form or another for centuries. I feel that for some people, this thought shadows the idea that achieving a feminist society by participating in movements and demonstrations is everyone’s job. And in one form or another, men are affected too. Whether it be directly or towards their mothers, sisters, partners, or friends, they’re impacted as well. Let it be reasons to achieve equality for their loved ones enough to participate in feminist movements.
In the wake of an utterly misogynistic political climate, the need for participants in feminist movements is at an all time high.
If you were in attendance of the Women’s March on Washington this past January, how many men did you see? Some. But surely not as many in comparison to the number of women. Though some is better than none, to gain support of all feminist men will do justice. I must iterate that men play just as much of a role in feminist movements as women do.
In bell hooks’ work titled “Men:Comrades in Struggle”, she states
“Like women, men have been socialized to passively accept sexist ideology. While they need not blame themselves for accepting sexism, they must assume responsibility for eliminating it.”
Sexism and other patriarchal norms have been institutionalized. It is everyone’s duty to dispel this — men, women, and everyone in between. Feminist movements should equally rely on men as they do women.
Caitlyn Flynn’s article titled “Why It’s Important For Men To Participate In The Women’s March”, highlights why men need to participate in feminist movements, particularly the Women’s March. Although this article was written before the March took place, it emphasizes the role men play in movements. In addition, the article heightens the need for a progressive platform as our political leaders threaten to take rights away. The threat is imminent, and we need men to take a stand equal to women in order to prevent it from happening.
“During the next four years, women’s rights will be under greater attack than at any other point in recent memory. For example, Paul Ryan has already vowed to federally defund Planned Parenthood and he’ll have allies in Trump, who promised during his campaign to work to overturn Roe v. Wade, and VP-elect Mike Pence, who has spent years attempting to shut down the organization. Until 2018, Republicans will have control of the White House and Congress — so we need everyone to stand up and push back. America can’t afford for anyone who believes in equality, no matter their gender, to be complacent. Although these fights have only just begun, men can take a strong stand on January 21 by marching alongside women and endorsing the progressive platform put forth by the Women’s March.” — Caitlyn Flynn
Audre Lorde, a writer, feminist, and civil rights activists also stresses the importance that men are needed in conversations surrounding feminism. In her work, Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches, she contends that
“women of today are still being called upon to stretch across the gap of male ignorance and to educate men as to our existence and our needs. This is an old and primary tool of all oppressors to keep the oppressed occupied with the master’s concerns.”
She claims that this is a ‘tool’ where those oppressed become engrossed by the concerns of the oppressors. This evidence is important because it reveals that women cannot solely do the work of feminism all by themselves. Men are needed in feminist conversations and movements in order to make feminism a task for all people, rather than existing solely as a women’s movement.
Including men in the discourse of feminist thoughts and movements is crucial to ensuring that equality is achieved. It is a duty for all people regardless of their gender.
