toxic masculinity

It is insanity to suggest that men - our brothers, our fathers and our partners are not impacted by the misogynist rhetoric that saturates our social landscape today. How could they not be? These ideas have been in the atmosphere and passed down for generations long before social media kicked it into overdrive.

It's baked into our society. Well before we had the internet and the concept of 'shitposting' was a part of male bonding and long before we had 4chan - 'its just a joke'. Being a funny cunt is very important to men in Australia. It is one of the highest compliments you give a man! If you do not fit the physical requirements of an ~Athlete~ archetype, the next best thing is a the funny cunt. And you cant be a funny cunt if you have empathy for women or minority groups or any sensitivity outside of you and your cis hetero white peers experiences.

Our national identity is that of the Larrikin. Defined as: "a mischievous young person, an uncultivated, rowdy but good hearted person" - Does this does hold space for the experiences of different gender identities, sexual orientations, race or disability?

From our Prime Minister finding the time to hang out in the locker rooms of a footy club but not having the time to meet with women who are marching for justice, finding the time to share with us his Saturday night curries but no time to get our vaccine roll out even started, to our national media giving platforms to Andrew Bolt who told us to 'Stop jailing white men for child rape claims', to our continuing gender pay gap which is not scheduled to decrease for another 25 years, to the BULLSHIT behaviour that goes on again and again in our AFL and NRL teams, to the elitist scandals actively doing harm to minority groups in our private boys school, to the comments men we know leave on Channel 7s facebook, to the unsolicited dick pics they send by way of greeting on dating apps.

This behaviour is connected, enforced by their parents, mates and society.