Again, Stating a case of a Ministry for the Status of Men and Boys. First suggested on these pages Aug.2 2017
There was an interesting interview ,dated, 2/26 Amanpour On PBS regarding the troubling issue of the recent school shooting in Florida and the sidebar on the state of American boys. The issue revolves around a dangerously outdated definition of masculinity.
Fifty years of feminism has had a profound effect of how men see themselves and the effects in extreme have been negative and generally ignored as a cause of concern by society. I have made the case for a government ministry for the status of men because not dealing with these issues has been in constant downward spiral. The effects are clearly across the board and have social costs in this multicultural environment for both men and women. It is not just white male problem, it is also aboriginal male , it is old world Europe, the Middle East , and for Asian and the Far Eastern males.
Christiane Amanpour's 30 minute interview show has replaced the 60minute Charlie Rose On PBS program. The time loss has had the effect of really compressing the usually far sighted and deep analysis of world events.
Amanpour's interview with Michael Ian Black , described as comedian, actor and writer although this interview is not a comedy routine. He is speaking as a father of a teenage son. In this short 15 minute segment he clearly makes the case for offering assistance to the male half of society by redefining and broadening the perspective of masculinity.
“America's boys are broken and it's killing us.” he says ,referring to the overwhelming number of boys involved in US mass shootings. He later amends the issue of boys on a world wide scale.
As a man and a father he wants his son to be better equipped mentally for manhood and says that masculinity has too narrow a definition in today's culture.
The “masculinity model is broken,”it does not try create a definition of all the various aspects of manhood. Masculinity has been reduced to primal defaults of stoic,strength, aggression and competitiveness, and these qualities have become redundant with the active equality of women in all aspects of society including policing and the military. The narrow definition leaves men and boys with two “toxic” options “withdraw or rage.” Toxic has been the word often used during the Me Two movement, especially in the workplace power incidents with men.
This is an interesting insight going back to the Charlottesville march by 200 male white supremacists. One of the phrases they kept repeating during their march was “we will not be replaced.” I thought it odd at the time but is makes sense.
Fifty years of feminism has expanded the definition of woman's strengths but there has been no corresponding redefining for men.
In the Canadian context the inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls is a prime example for the need for a concerted look at providing better education resources for boys and men.
The definition of masculinity needs to be broader and more relevant to this time and place in society.
The language needs to “decouple” negative connotations of being sensitive in the definition of masculinity because men are that also. The “alpha” male is a minority view ,achievable by the very few, but it is thought to be aspirational to the many. The “alpha” male is as unattainable to the male population and the high fashion body type is to most females.
As a side note, the PBS Independent Lens documentary about James Baldwin called I Am Not Your Negro ,(1960's area civil rights footage) Baldwin describes , layer by layer the essence of racism. One point being that white US culture has an immature view of it self. The idea of white American heroes like John Wayne is absurd yet he is a enduring icon in the gun culture.
A good man with a gun (or teacher) can stop a bad man with a gun. This is absurd but still based in old Hollywood movie culture.
The “dial needs to be moved,” the broadened definition for the good of humanity spearheaded in the United States and Canada would make the world a better place. The dial has to be moved beyond the protection of brands. These are moral issues not consumer or brand issues. Canada is in a perfect position to restore it's soft power credibility with a doable process that is already half started.
A Ministry for the Status of Men and Boys is in order.
The United States is in a good position for hard power internal cultural change that does not involve a civil war. Broader ,more mature views on men and women , boys and girls together could put Western Democracies back on top again in the eyes of the world. Opinion by Ken Gigliotti
Topic: Restating the need for a Ministry for the Status of Men and Boys (Read 1180 times)