If you are a woman, tell me, have you ever thought that the way your brother or your father receive opportunities, you don’t? Masculinity is not just the way a man is, but it also defines the aggression and the violence that men have within them.
However, these aspects are something other than what they should use in life. Instead, they need to focus their energy on their creativity. Socialization has contributed to the overall growth of man as a good human being.
There are several types of privilege, through which you can understand the biasness! If you are a man, then tell me, do you think there has ever been a situation where you have received an opportunity without doing anything? If so, you can read this blog to become more aware of the practices.
It will help you develop qualities that will make men more aware, open to love, expressive, and supportive!
Does Male Privilege Create a Bubble for Men?
You will observe that men receive more income and higher social status than women or other genders! Just being a man helps them access cultural, political, and social benefits that might be difficult or quite challenging for other genders.
As a man, it is your responsibility to integrate your authority and power to make others aware of equality and its importance. Even decision-making and the authority to raise one’s voice are justified as men’s inborn qualities. However, that is not the case.
When defining male privilege, we must remember that it not only reinforces the imbalance between men and women but also gives men a sense of entitlement. Let us discuss different aspects of society and how they are influenced by male privilege.
Definition
Do you know what is male privilege? It is an assumption that boys and men get access to resources just by being male! This is, of course, a patriarchal society that grants men and boys’ greater access.
You can access economic, political, and social privileges as a man. Furthermore, there is a perception in society that men can have sexual access to women’s bodies along with labor.
Intersectionality
“Maleness” is a practice where all men have access to similar privileges even though they belong to different castes, religions, and ethnicities. In almost religions, being a male has always been significant as you get priorities decision-making. However, some factors might influence it!
- Class
- Race
- Employment status
- Nationality
- Temperament
- Ethnicity
- Appearance
- Geography
- Education
These aspects do influence your preferences and priorities when it comes to society treating men a certain way! Men have more access to various aspects of life in both personal and professional life. Authority and power are aspects related to our society that are related to men and boys by default.
Examples of Male Privilege
Let me share several examples of male privilege with you, which will help you get a better idea of how to deal with it. If you are a man, being aware of it is important because you can stop it if, with your privilege, someone else is facing challenges.
For a woman, male privilege might be severely complicated because it not only deteriorates their condition in society but also oppresses their basic human rights. The first example is that males often have access to professional mentors easily because, in mostly all-powerful and authority positions, there are men!
A man is never questioned or undermined as a leader, and the respect they receive is automatic. I have seen that women are often advised on their life decisions, sexual advances, professional growth, and others. Being a man is quite beneficial because nobody doubts them in these aspects!
Men greet each other with a handshake, and in most cases, they are not judged for the way they behave in social surroundings. Be it in a professional workshop or technical conference, men are expected to be naturally a part of the crowd compared to women.
Impact of Male Privilege
The Western expectations related to masculinity can be significantly harmful to men because it leads to toxic behavior and entitlement. Many people in society still believe in male superiority and significance, which hampers the growth and natural development of other genders, such as women, transgender, and nonbinary individuals.
Practices such as these also lead to the development of ideologies related to male superiority, impacting the way women are treated in society. According to research, we need to acknowledge male privilege and the biased practices related to it.
Only when we address it and spread awareness about it can we see equality in society? There are also people in society who take advantage of these privileges that are interrelated with social privileges, leading to further negative impacts on all.
Critical Social Work with Men
The first step towards equality is talking about critical masculinity in an open forum! All genders must discuss it and their perspectives on its impact. You will see that it plays a vital role in educating men about their male privilege and patriarchy.
The more we share our perspectives and beliefs related to male privilege, the more we understand the way male privilege works! You can also see that there is gender privilege interrelated with the way men are treated a certain way in society.
Why don’t we organize Patriarchal Awareness workshops and seminars? It is a good step towards advocating practices that preach equality. If men don’t raise their voices their voices regarding the inconsequential advantages and access, they receive just because they are men, nothing good will come out of it.
Furthermore, remember that advocating the practices of men will also lead to highlighting the intellectual oppression against women. We need to make our men and boys aware of the responsibility to break the barriers and challenges that male privilege has created for others.
If you believe in male privilege or do not raise your voice against it, you are complicit in the acts that are done in the name of male superiority. This indirectly hampers society’s growth and development. Of course, there are several social privilege that are good.
Yet, we must streamline what works and is morally and ethically wrong! Let me share my point of view regarding the impact of male privilege on our culture and traditions.
Cultural Analysis
In our American society, the definition of manhood still needs to be updated! We highlight it with actions and rules like men don’t cry, men don’t do household chores, men do not share their pain, men must be the primary bread earner of the family and much more.
I am completely against such perceptions, beliefs, and practices. Let me share the name of the book by Jared Sexton called “The Man They Wanted Me to Be”! Published in 2019, the book destroys patriarchy like no other.
It talks about how we set problematic masculine role models that turn soft and sensitive boys into complex men. These men are confused about what they should do with their emotions and feelings. They start feeling as if sharing their emotions or being soft is a sign of weakness, or at least that’s how the world perceives them.
The author highlights how more white men need to act by speaking out about how they are forced to stay in a certain box. Maybe this is another step towards white privilege.
Men are forcefully categorized to behave a certain way even if it means they don’t feel themselves. Yes, therapy helps, but why are we pushing men into a zone where they need to seek treatment?
Finishing Off…
In short, incorporating male privilege into our daily lives might create a wrong definition of masculinity for all. Yes, men are powerful and must be given responsibility, but parents need to ensure they don’t grow to feel entitlement.
There are many types of privilege that ensure that many people get access to opportunities without even considering the negative impact it has on others. You must understand the significance of privileges and how they can be influenced to make an overall change in society for welfare.
Comment on what you think about male privilege and whether you have ever experienced it.
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