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Do you think that men have a role in the struggle for women’s equality; if so, what?

I think that men do have a role in the struggle for women’s equality but I am not positive on what I think that role should be. Men are directly responsible for the inequality in the first place so it’s only fair that they should be held responsible for helping to fix the problem. Without their cooperation, based on the extreme hold on positions of power in today’s society, the struggle for equality will be very hard. Should we ignore the help of powerful men like the president or even celebrities out of unwillingness to include men into the discussion? The role they play should be a small one. I think that if too many men enter into feminist discussion they may not truly understand the problem at hand. They do not have the same life experiences that women have, they’ll never understand or comprehend what it is like to be a woman. I think that a lot of feminist/women only spaces are seen as a safe-haven for many women. If men are included in these situations for the sake of including everyone, is their presence going to be damaging or in any way uncomfortable for the women who may seek solace in female only spaces? At the same time, the patriarchy hurts men – not as much as it hurts women but it is still hurting them. Men are forced to comply with patriarchal stereotypes that may cause long-term damage.

While many men have supported women’s struggle for equality, there is a lack of education about men active in feminist activism. Why do you think this is?

While there may have been men that have played a large role in the fight for women’s equality I think that there are many valid reasons why there are not always included in women’s studies classes (or other classes/spaces of that nature). As college students we learn about the achievements of men and their successes all the time – it’s practically all we learn about. In every Art History class I’ve ever taken we’ve focused so hard on the male artists and every once and a while a female artist may be mentioned. Taking a women’s studies class is a very different experience. It’s one time that we can focus our attention solely on women. What are women doing in this field? How are women contributing to this area of academia? Men are celebrated and learned about in academia, university and all levels of education constantly. In order to move away from the single story idea we learned about in class we need to take advantage of the opportunities to talk about women, and only talk about women. These classes may be the only time that you ever learn about a certain woman – why take time away from that experience to discuss how a man helped the solve the problem that they are a part of creating? That’s not to say we should never discuss men and the fight for equality, take this piece on Donald Woodman as an example. Do I feel like a more well rounded feminist after watching this video? Yes – but at the same time this is the perfect amount of inclusion of men in the feminist discussion. Any more effort would seem counterproductive.

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