Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. The Democrats are the “Mommy Party” and the Republicans are the “Dad Party”. This trope is so old and overused as to become cliche almost as soon as it arrived on the scene. There is no mistake the TrumpBrand GOP is all about “Traditional” masculinity meaning roughly that men are the kings of their castles and should be allowed to offend basically whomever they want. On this weekend of the 2nd Women’s March I thought I would take a look at the toxic masculinity of modern conservatism.
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What is Toxic Masculinity?
I turned to an article in Psychology Today for a solid working definition of the term Toxic Masculinity in order to frame this section.
Terry Kupers, a professor at the The Wright Institute school of psychology defines toxic masculinity as “the constellation of socially regressive male traits that serve to foster domination, the devaluation of women, homophobia and wanton violence.”
Another term often used is Hypermasculinity, taking these violent and aggressive traits to their most explosive extremes.
In the book, Guys and Guns Amok: Domestic Terrorism and School Shootings from the Oklahoma City Bombing to the Virginia Tech Massacre, UCLA professor of education and cultural critic Douglas Kellner argues that "school shootings and other acts of mass violence embody a crisis of out-of-control gun culture and male rage, heightened by a glorification of 'hyper masculinity' and violence in the media.”
Donald Mosher and Silvan Tomkins argue in “Scripting the Macho Man: Hypermasculine Socialization and Enculturation” that the concept of machismo descends from the ideology of warfare and conflict.
The ideological script of machismo descends from the ideology of the warrior and the stratifications following warfare--victor and vanquished, master and slave, the head of the house and woman as his complement, the patriarch and his children. The personality script of the macho man and his ideology of machismo mutually amplify one another --simultaneously justifying his lifestyle and celebrating his world view. In his dangerous, adversarial world of scarce resources, his violent, sexually callous, and dangerous physical acts express his "manly" essence.
Trump, the GOP, and the Glorification of Manliness
Here is the reason I bring all of this up, aside from the obvious fact that Trump exhibits pretty much all of the things I just laid out. A recent CNN poll said that his approval rating among men has risen eight points to 49%, meaning that basically half the men in the survey and by extension the nation approve of Trump’s job performance. This difference is the driver for the rise in his overall approval rating to 40%, still low but higher than it should be.
And there is this from the Atlantic,
“Among African Americans and Hispanics, reactions to Trump depend more on gender than age or education. In every age group, and at every level of education, about twice as many African American men as women gave Trump positive marks. In all, 23 percent of black men approved of Trump’s performance versus 11 percent of black women . . . Black men are one of the few groups for which Trump’s 2017 average approval rating significantly exceeds his 2016 vote share.
Among Hispanics, men were also much more likely than women to express positive views about Trump. Among Hispanic men older than 50, Trump’s approval — strikingly — exceeded 40 percent.”
Which Leads Us To This Moment in History
As we move into Year Two, the Left faces a choice of Feminism or trying to win the battle for most macho political party. I would hope that a second Women’s March has helped to make it clear that the direction with the populist energy is the former, and wiser, choice. It is time to eagerly embrace Feminism as a model for the future, meaning that struggle and conflict should be downplayed as we search for actual cooperation and support.
It shouldn’t be a hard choice. Democrats aren’t going to gain much ground tied to the traditional masculine hierarchical system held so dearly by Republican voters. Let them have their candidates and that position. Let us move boldly into a future where the definition of masculine leaves behind the warrior ethos and the inner fragility of protected strength.
As the sign says, The Future is Female.
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