Movement for Equality or Mockery?
An investigation of “men’s rights” after the cancellation of a “pro-rape” rally in Calgary
Georgia Longphee, Staff Writer
If you thought that misogyny hadn’t ruined everything in our society, you might be wrong.
“Meninism,” a men’s rights movement that started in the early 2000’s, was spearheaded by men with misogynist goals to undermine modern feminism. This ‘meninist’ movement started around 2013, when twitter account @MeninistTweet, as well as several other twitter accounts, started their attack on feminism. These self-proclaimed ‘meninists’ use social media to mock rape posters, domestic violence and the real-life struggles of the female gender, solely for satirical purposes.
A disturbing image tweeted by a self-declared “meninist.” | Photo by Amy Tucker
A rather disturbing example was a tweet from @samstaydipped, who said: “Men should have a say in abortion. It’s my child as well #YesAllMen #MenimistTwitter.” This tweet was subtweeted by @smoke1playa, who replied: “@samstaydipped: WE DO! It’s called…” with the bottom right photo attached.
Isabelle Sinclair is an MRU Sociology major with a minor in Gender Studies. Sinclair says that meninism is a “backlash to feminism” and that by mocking feminism; ‘meninists’ are putting down every social change group. Gender justice, she explains, is giving everyone the means to succeed, and meninists are afraid that if feminism achieves their goals their privilege will be threatened. “They feel that by females and other groups gaining equality, they’re benefits from being (generally) white males will be taken away from them,” she says. Sinclair points out that ‘real’ feminism is equality for all people, no matter their gender, race or sexual orientation, and that there are men’s rights issues being fought for by feminism.
Several organizations promote men’s rights without using misogyny, including the National coalition for Men, National Coalition of Men Successes and Men Do Complain. These organizations tackle issues such as male rape and domestic abuse, as well as providing resources for these matters. The National Coalition for Men has dealt specifically with the issues of male domestic violence, as well as trying to get diaper tables in men’s washrooms and fighting the anti-male bias in the justice system (especially in family courts). Men Do Complain deals with the issue of male infant circumcision and genital mutilation.
While there are many men’s rights movements promoting misogyny and inequality hopefully the recent cancellation of the “pro-rape rally” is an indication that they will never gain any real footing.
