We're not. We don't. No, really. And now we have the study to prove it. Actually, there's been a couple, but more on that later.
I've been telling people that for years. I don't hate men. I married one. Been married to him for more than fifteen years. Still like him. Mostly.
What the researchers found while gearing up for this study, was that there have been damn few scientific studies of how Feminists felt toward men, and that those that had been done found that Feminists either shared the same view of men as Non-Feminists or felt at least a little more positively toward men. Please see the article for citations.
In the course of this new study, in which they had both male and female subjects and a mixture of Feminist/Non-Feminist, as well as Hispanics, African Americans and White subjects, the researchers discovered that overall, people who identified as Feminist, regardless of gender or ethnicity, had a more positive view of men than Non-Feminists.
Huh. Let's see. The people who think men CAN be more than animalistic rape-machines and who expect them to be able to exercise restraint and behave like rational human beings think more highly of them than those folks who seem to seriously believe that all men are one flashed boob or drunk girl away from rapist.
Who'd a thunk it?
I've long maintained that Feminists like men more, or at the very least have a much higher opinion of them than non-feminists do. Why would I say that? Let's break it down.
Feminists believe that men are first and foremost people. They believe that men do not need to rape, nor that rape is the inevitable result of a man and a woman being alone if she does not want to "put out." Feminists believe that men and women can have equal partnerships and that men can totally handle that. Feminists do not believe that all you have to do to to "hook" a man is show up naked and bring beer. Feminists believe that men are thinking, feeling beings, just like women are.
Non-Feminists, apparently, believe that men rape. That it is up to women to stop men from raping, because men have no self control and can't help themselves. They pretty much apparently believe that men are little more than walking libidos with gigantic appetites, who can muster little more than grunting, if we're lucky. They believe that all men are predators who immediately turn into doofuses when married. Or, if they remain predators and cheat, that that's just the way they are, their man-brains can't handle concepts like promises of fidelity. They also seem to think that men can't handle the idea of a woman who is smarter, stronger, faster or tougher than they are.
Yeah, I can definitely see how you could believe Feminists hate men, with all our believing that men aren't all incipient criminals who are out to rape every woman they meet, and who can work with women as equals. I totally get that.
/sarcasm
Seriously, guys, patriarchy hurts you, too. When will you finally understand that?
Mickey Schulz is a guest author for the California NOW blog; her opinions are not necessarily those of California NOW. Copyright Mickey Schulz, with permission granted to California NOW for use on this site.
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