Boys*

Short-term solutions are hard. In past work, I’ve proposed solutions to men’s compensatory anger and aggression at both the individual and societal levels. For example, I believe that it’s important for adults, such as parents, clinicians and teachers, to resist the urge to put undue pressures on boys, as well as to equip boys with the tools they need to resist such pressure. At a broader level, it’s important to promote gender diversity in positions of leadership and power, so that boys learn that people of all genders—not just men—share the responsibility for providing and protecting. If we can target the mechanisms underlying the pressure that boys and men experience, we should be able to mitigate the anger and aggression they exhibit to prove their manhood.

Well, a lot of the families of these young men are also deeply involved in the evangelical community that teach that these pressures are not only societal, they are God-given and healthy. They learn that if they don’t adopt this type of masculinity, they are going against the biblical version of the man. They might not even make it to heaven. They’ll be burning in eternal fire. And if your parents and your church and your day-to-day leaders keep pushing this, it’s no surprise that they end up voting for the toxic masculinity Trump represents.

IMO it’s all about understanding our emotions. The patriarchy actively teaches people to supress and ignore their emotions, a fact well studied by feministic theory. At the same time emotional manipulation a core part of the far-right recipe. Promoting mental health could go a long way in improving society.