The latest edition of Jubilee’s viral series “Surrounded” featured the growing movement of young male empowerment. Among the wide range of self-proclaimed members was a “righteous anger” fueled by the belief that feminism is a systemic tool designed to disempower men. On the surface, the manosphere seems like the ultimate anti-feminist enemy of progress, yet its roots are drawn from the same soil that sowed third-wave feminism. Movements born in reaction to perceived disadvantage often develop similar habits of thought, even when they oppose one another. Just as women have found solidarity in shared experiences of sexism, young men have now banded together around shared feelings of being sidelined and scapegoated. Feminism for men functions as the “patriarchy” does for women — the culprit behind their collective world of frustration. Both ideologies interpret personal life through the lens of group identity, where nuance often gives way to tribal thinking. Until men and women jump off the pendulum, they will both continue swinging too far.
The Manosphere Copied the Playbook of Third-Wave Feminism
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Mia Downing
With academic interests in psychology and criminal justice, I am passionate about evaluating the way politics and culture shape each other. My writing focuses on the ethics underlying political debates, and critiquing both sides of the aisle.
