This is the best picture ever of my boys...
This picture was taken about 8 years ago. That part of my life was super complicated, but many days I still miss it. Four tiny humans that needed me for absolutely everything. I was recovering from a cesarean section, I was attending college full time. I was exhausted, breastfeeding 2 babies, and trying to figure out how to juggle everything.
I always wanted to be a mother, these kids are everything to me. Some days I am not so sure that I am doing as good of a job as I could. I try every single day to teach them how to be good people, to help them pursue their passions, to let them be individuals, to teach them and help them become independent. In this house we do hugs, we laugh, we go on adventures, we act silly, and we keep an open mind.
I am trying to raise excellent humans, unfortunately, it seems like many people in society simply don't like boys.
How do I protect my sons from a society that views them as aggressive, violent, manipulative and sexist?
I have become super in tune to all the ways that other people speak about boys and men to each other, openly on social media and to their daughters. It is not a good sound. Many woman don't speak highly of their husbands, too many times I have read messages and heard people say that they will be waiting with a gun when a boy breaks their daughters heart.
Why do you want to shoot my son???
Now maybe I am overreacting, I don't have any daughters, and most of my close friends aren't females. However, from where I am standing there seems to be a general distaste for boys/men. The ever growing feminist movement, the "me too" campaign, and the complete break down of traditional gender roles may have influenced this. I am not sure as I am not a sociologist, but it seems to me that many people think that it is ok to describe men in a ways that hold mostly negative connotations.
Some men are violent, and damage people beyond repair, but so are some women, men can be and are victims too. We call people who intentionally ruin other people.... bad people. Being a terrible human doesn't require that you be a certain gender.
Before anyone makes any guesses about my political associations or other beliefs, I will just lay them out for you. I identify as a Libertarian, but I am not registered with any political party. I am pro-choice, pro-death penalty and believe there are only two genders. I am also pro constitution and firmly believe in small government/states rights. I am not a firm believer in strict traditional gender roles, I am educated and have spent most of my adult life working outside of the home. However, I do believe that gender roles are important for society to function efficiently.
I am a woman who was raised in a home that looked different than the typical family, my mom worked full time from the time I was 11 years old. My dad was there for me when I had my first heartbreak, he cooked me dinner, he helped me with home work, and he is one of the kindest, most nurturing people I know. I still want my dad on particularly hard days, he is one of my favorite humans.
I am trying to raise my sons to be awesome fathers, great spouses, and well rounded valuable members in society. Can we start by reminding boys that they can be, and men that they are?
Thank you for your time, I hope you read this with an open mind.
I would love to hear your thoughts on this issue.
Until next time.
All the love,
krazykrista
Both of these articles were interesting:
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2010/07/the-end-of-men/308135/
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/03/31/masculinity-traditional-toxic-trump-mens-rights/99830694/