Anne-Marie Duff explains why she doesn’t like the term ‘toxic masculinity’

Article here. Excerpt:

'Anne-Marie Duff has discussed her experience of raising a son, and said she does not like the term “toxic masculinity”.

The Bad Sisters actor, 54, parents a teenage son, Brendan, with her ex-husband James McAvoy, who she met on the set of the British comedy-drama Shameless.

Speaking about bringing up a boy and the discourse around young men, she told The Observer Magazine: “I think the rhetoric around it is frustrating sometimes. Like, I don’t love the expression ‘toxic masculinity’, because masculinity is a describing noun, isn’t it? Is all masculinity toxic? It’s like saying, ‘pathetic femininity’.”

She added: “My worry is that there are a lot of young boys who think it’s innate.”

Duff then pointed to “a very sad story” a friend had recently told her about a 13-year-old boy they knew who was having counselling because he thought there was an inevitability about him becoming a rapist.

“We have to be so careful with our young people,” she said.'

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It's No Surprise Young Men Are Abandoning the Democratic Party

Article here. Excerpt:

'You have probably heard that the Democratic party is falling out of favor with men. All the evidence shows this to be true, especially with young men in the 18-29 age group who have been migrating en masse to the Republican party in recent election cycles. From the 2016 Trump-Clinton race to now, the percentage of these voters that identify or lean Democrat has taken a nosedive from 51 percent to 39 percent. The reasons for this shift are many and I am positive that the experience boys are having in school is a contributing factor.
...
Imagine that girls (and even some teachers!) wear t-shirts to school that say “the future is female” or “girls rule, boys drool.” On the one hand, this is hardly a big deal. On the other hand, boys would never be allowed to wear anything that claimed the opposite. The message of derision and contempt is kind of baked in and that takes a toll after a while.

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Why Aren’t Men’s Issues Being Taken Seriously? - George TheTinMen

Video here. George from TheTinMen is a content creator, pro-men’s advocate and a researcher.

Why is it so hard to advocate for the problems of boys and men? If truly we care about half of the population flourishing and living lives they enjoy, why is it so unpopular to talk about the challenges they're facing?

Expect to learn what George thinks the current world of advocacy for men looks like, why the press struggles to define what “healthy masculinity” is, the lessons we can learn from the rise of the Manosphere, the hidden effects of bullying on boys' mental health, whether White Guys For Harris actually helped men and much more.

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Law Student Faces Expulsion for ‘Aggressive Pointing’

Article here. Excerpt:

'When Houston Porter, a 28-year-old law student at Pace University, first walked into the college auditorium last month, he was surprised to see a packed house for the “Saving Women’s Sports” panel he was co-moderating.

“Our events normally don’t get that kind of turnout,” says Porter, a member of The Federalist Society, a conservative group that sponsored the panel at Pace’s law school in White Plains, New York. “So it was exciting.”

But not long after, Porter’s world started “crumbling down”—with at least one professor shouting at panelists and another allegedly rushing the stage, followed by a Title IX investigation that accuses him of having “aggressively pointed” at a transgender student and misgendering her. Now Porter faces the possibility of suspension, expulsion, and even being barred from practicing law.'

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The real reason for the rise in male childlessness

Article here. Excerpt:

'But the picture of who is childless is changing. Recent research has found that it’s more likely to be men who aren’t able to have children even if they want them – in particular lower income men.

A 2021 study in Norway found that the rate of male childlessness was 72% among the lowest five percent of earners, but only 11% among the highest earners – a gap that had widened by almost 20 percentage points over the previous 30 years.

Robin Hadley is one of those who wanted to have a child but struggled to do so. He didn’t go to university and went on to become a technical photographer in a university lab, based in Manchester, and by his 30s, he was desperate to be a dad.'

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Entrenched Sexism Is Very Australian. Let’s Uproot It

Article here. Excerpt:

'From the boardroom to the workplace, it’s been a horrible year for women. And one of the worst places has been Australia.

Company boards — still overwhelmingly male — are failing to meaningfully hold executives accountable for bad behavior. Large institutional investors must double down on insisting diversity in the C-suite is non-negotiable, as gender-parity initiatives stall.

Or have we? The corporate world is run by a network of old boys whose connections are forged at single-sex private schools. Women continue to be subjected to violence at home at such a rate that the prime minister declared it a “national crisis” after a spate of killings earlier this year. Unwanted and aggressive attention on a night out is far too common.

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Cape Town father wins court case after WhatsApp reveals paternity fraud

Article here. Excerpt:

'A Kraaifontein man has won a High Court battle to relinquish his parental rights after discovering he was not the biological father of his daughter. He had been paying maintenance for years.

The judgment by Judge James Dumisani Lekhuleni revealed how the man had discovered the truth of his ex-wife’s extramarital affair on WhatsApp. In the application, the father, who is unnamed to protect the child, sought relief from the court after paternity tests revealed the truth.'

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Urgent Call for Lawmakers and Others to Address Global Crisis Affecting Men and Boys 

Press release here. Excerpt:

'October 30, 2024 – Around the world, men and boys are facing an unprecedented human rights crisis. This crisis is contributing to a range of social problems such as the weakening of the family, plummeting birth rates, and the dad-deprivation of millions of children (1).

Globally, men and boys are lagging behind women and girls in 12 areas: Education, Health, Child labor, False allegations, Victims of violence, Parenting, Treatment by the criminal system, Partner abuse, Homelessness, Workplace injuries and deaths, Reproductive and adoption rights, and Media portrayals (2).

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Young men are struggling. They need help, not hounding

Article here. Excerpt:

'Former President Barack Obama’s recent scolding of Black men for not considering a woman, Democrat Kamala Harris, a viable presidential candidate, has been much debated. What hasn’t been debated, and should be, speaks to a larger issue among many young men of all races.

Obama’s accusation that misogyny was at play — a fraught, oversimplified one — overlooks deeper trends and factors. Many young men of all races feel alienated from not just the Democratic Party itself but from a culture and future that doesn’t seem to include or welcome them.

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Boys at Swanson learn healthy perspective of masculinity with new program

Article here. Excerpt:

'The Louisiana Department of Juvenile Justice joined the Swanson Center for the Youth in Monroe to host the “Healthy Masculinity” program on Tuesday, Oct. 29.

The program was made to teach boys how to have a healthy perspective of masculinity by creating a safe space for vulnerability.

Boys in the program learned about coping mechanisms for trauma, setting healthy boundaries, setting standards, and communicating emotions properly.

“[It’s] so important, you know, for the young men to see people who look like them, you know, to come inside our facilities and not only just teach them about being a man, but just be that mentor,” said La. DOJJ Public Information Director Nicolette Gordon.'

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Nikki Haley Rips ‘Bromance’ and ‘Masculinity Stuff’ on Display at Trump’s MSG Rally: ‘Going to Make Women Uncomfortable’

Article here. Excerpt:

'Former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley criticized the “bromance” and “masculinity stuff” on display at former President Donald Trump’s controversial Madison Square Garden rally this week, arguing it could alienate female voters.

During an appearance on Fox News, Tuesday, Haley said, “I think they need to do what they need to do to get across the finish line. I just think that they need to focus primarily on who it is they are talking to.”'

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Using Research to Push a Narrative

Article here. Excerpt:

'There’s a noticeable trend in research about men and women that often tells only part of the story. A prime example is domestic violence studies that falsely claim women are the sole victims, while ignoring men’s experiences. This happens in other areas too—like reproductive coercion, teen violence, healthcare, and others. Women’s troubles are spotlighted, while men’s are overlooked. Once you see this pattern, it’s hard to unsee it.

In this post, we’ll look at a study published in July of 2024, that employs a similar strategy—not by lying, but by omission. The researchers present only the part of the story that supports the narrative they want to push. And in this case, it’s clear.'

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What exactly is toxic masculinity? And could the term's overuse have unintended consequences?

Article here. Excerpt:

'Parenting educator and author Maggie Dent agrees the term can be problematic.

"I believe we have toxic males, the same as we've got toxic females," she says. "I believe both genders deserve to be respected as individuals."

Yet she points out there has been a shift in the behaviour and attitudes of teenage boys in recent years.

"We absolutely know that today's tweens and teen boys, even as young as [nine or 10] … if they've got a phone or they've got access to devices and they're on certain social media, they are getting marinated in content that is the opposite to what anybody wants for their son," she says.

In the 40 years since she was a high school teacher, Ms Dent says teenage banter and teasing has taken an alarming turn.'

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In a race defined by gender, Michelle Obama pleads with men to step up

Article here. Excerpt:

'“To anyone out there thinking about sending out this election or voting for Donald Trump or a third-party candidate in protest because you’re fed up, let me warn you: Your rage does not exist in a vacuum,” she said. “If we don’t win this election, your wife, your daughter, your mother, we as women will become collateral damage to your rage.”'

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Michelle Obama says she's a 'little angry' at the hesitation to vote for Harris

Article here. Excerpt:

'She spoke specifically to men in her remarks, emphasizing that further restrictions on abortion and other aspects of women’s health care would impact them and their sons, too.

“I am asking y'all from the core of my being to take our lives seriously — please,” Obama said. “Do not put our lives in the hands of politicians — mostly men — who have no clue or do not care about what we, as women, are going through.”'

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