Member-only story
Stop Telling Men That Crying Is the Best Part of Gender Equality
Progressives need to stop constantly belabouring this one topic and acting like it’s some top win. Seriously, just stop.
Spoiler alert: If you haven’t watched Adolescence, go do it now.
Yes, emotional repression is bad. Yes, men bottling up feelings until they explode in rage, depression, or self-destruction is a problem. And yes, crying can be a great way to regulate emotions.
When we say that men should cry more, what we really mean is that men benefit from allowing themselves to be emotionally more complex and open, instead of repressing their emotions so much and then up to the point when they explode in anger or result in depression, loneliness and suicide. Everyone else benefits, too.
But is this what people hear?
I just finished watching Adolescence. I honestly can’t imagine talking to Jamie and telling him he should stop following the manosphere influencers, abandon his entitled attitudes towards women, and instead embrace more equitable and fair positive masculinity — because this means he would be able to cry more. He would laugh in my face.
He’s watching content that tells him he should be strong, assertive, and never…
