When you think of a feminist what is it that you picture? Most would picture this image of this hostile “femi-nazi” whose main goal is to destroy the lives of men. Even if you didn't have that image, did you picture a woman? Almost every individual would picture woman but I am here to end that stereotype. I am a male student but being a feminist is probably the identity I hold closest to me.
When we think of gender inequality we think of these big statistics like the wage gap or how woman hold only 103 out of the 535 seats in the U.S. Congress. These items seem large and out of our control but gender inequality is much simpler than that. It is simply the engagement in the world around us and the differences in our experiences. As a man, people don't question me if I tell that I would rather focus on my career instead of getting married or having children; however in many cases, society has dictated that a woman must go through knowing that marriage and children are one of her top priorities. Woman have to make conscious decisions about what they wear on night out because men will sexualize their bodies, but men don't think twice about being sexualized for their outfits. Gender inequality can also be much darker such as rape culture on college campuses, or how victim blaming occurs in court rooms. It’s a culture beyond campuses. From youth men are taught to be hunters and women the hunted, the pursuers and the bait. If we raise children different ways how can we expect an equality in the adult world.
The fight for gender equality affects men as well. Women make the highest number of individuals to go to therapy. Yet, men account for 2/3 suicides because men are too afraid of societal pressures to seek help. If men were more comfortable with opening and sharing their feelings than how many lives could have been saved, but instead they are too afraid of being seeing as feminine. That macho attitude hurts in many ways. It’s that macho attitude that has created the aggressive stereotype to men. If men did not seem compelled to be aggressive or even work to end the stereotype that all men are aggressive, attitudes like rape culture and domestic violence would not be as prevalent. In almost every society, a woman’s role of a mother is valued more than a man’s role a father. As a father, would you not want you role in your child’s life to have the same merit as the mother’s? Gender inequality may seem like it would only help woman but that is not the case, its just a different battle.
If any of these things angered you or even bothered you, than I hate to break it to you but you’re a feminist. When it comes down to it a feminist is a person who simply believes in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes. I am not asking you to start protesting, all I am telling you is to think about how you engage in this world. As a man and as a feminist, I am comfortable taking less money for a wage if it means my female counterparts make the same amount as me. I am willing to learn about consent and take bystander training, if it means that it eliminates the acceptance of rape culture. For men it may seem like a give and take but it means that women get the same basic rights men have had for years. It means my female friends, my mother, and my sisters get to live a life with the luxuries I have had for years. To me the answer is obvious but then again like I said being a feminist is my most important identity.
