It seems bizarre, but when I do something as trivial as going to work and drink from my wife’s pink reusable coffee cup, I always receive a string of ‘friendly’ jibes from my colleagues… because it is pink… unbecoming of a man… and I must be less of a man for drinking from it. Why is it so bad for a man to exhibit what society quantifies as a feminine characteristic?įrom showing emotion to carrying out household chores to supporting feminism, a man who does this is branded unmanly and rejected by toxic masculine followers. This sends out a clear core belief of toxic masculinity: femininity is seen to be lesser than masculinity. If they do, these men will be abused, shamed or humiliated by a society embarrassed by the fact they are not conforming to masculine ideals. When a man smashes against gender norms or supports femininity, it has a stigma attached. Overall, as the previous behaviour shows, it can be seen that Toxic Masculinity will repeatedly reject femininity in all its supposed forms. You can help Aurora raise vital funds to support victims and survivors of abuse:Ĭlick here to help Aurora raise funds during the COVID 19 Pandemic Toxic Masculinity versus Femininity Our work is guided by the principles set out in the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women or CEDAW, often referred to as an international bill of rights for women. We offer a variety of services and are involved in supporting feminist campaigns to end male violence against women. Since 2011, Aurora New Dawn has offered safety, support, advocacy, and empowerment to survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence and stalking. Who are we?Īurora New Dawn is a feminist led charity dedicated to ending violence against women and children, and hidden violence. Being asked to do a feminine deemed task such as housework, or worse, a man being criticised by a woman for not cleaning appropriately is often interpreted as an emasculating assault and provokes a masculine overcompensation response. Not engaging in household chores and caregivingĪgain, housework and childrearing are seen as feminine qualities.Ĭonnected to male dominance, toxic masculinity encourages taking risks to demonstrate dominance, men who buy into this are more likely to take extreme measures such as perpetrate violence, drive dangerously, gamble, abuse drugs. Research shows that men engaging in feminist activism are the targets of harassment by men who prescribe to toxic masculinity as it is perceived as feminine and non-conformist to toxic masculinity. It is unsurprising that the overly masculine would reject men who identify as the allies of feminists. From childhood, males are shamed to conform with the standard that to show emotion is weak and feminine. Stifling emotion is seen as true manliness. Įmotion is treated as being a feminine characteristic. Men who conform to toxic masculinity standards are more likely to make sexual comments or sexist jokes to women, commit sexual harassment, accept rape myths and behave as if they are entitled to women’s bodies. One study found that over a quarter of men thought they should have the final word in relationships, over a third of men believed that they had the right to know where their female partner was at all times.
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To be preoccupied with power and dominance to a point that it causes harm to others, such as verbal, physical and online bullying. There are numerous reasons for this, but there are clear links between male instigated violence and the need men have to use aggression and violence to prove their masculinity and bolster confidence in their masculine identity.
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Statistically, men commit significantly more violent crime than women. Through popular rhetoric and from an early age when boys are learning about gender roles, men are taught that to be homosexual is to be less masculine. Many men are programmed to react negatively to the concept of homosexuality as it is a sign of deviating from the traditional male stereotype.
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Men are constantly given the message that they must be self-reliant, independent, physically tough etc. It thrives by penalizing behavior which does not conform to its standard and celebrating behavior which does.
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Toxic masculinity is when the archetypal image of what it means to be masculine becomes harmful and aspirational.