This has been a tumultuous year. Whether because of the high-profile campus sexual assault cases, mass shootings, or the harmful language used by the President-elect, these are all the result of a hyper-masculine culture that values traits such as dominance, aggression, and control over empathy, care, and compassion. The result is a culture of toxic masculinity that permeates our society. Whether it’s bullying others, demeaning or degrading women, or placing value on money and power above all else, these ideas and expectations are dangerous and need to be addressed at the dinner table, in our local communities, and on the national stage.
That’s why this week, we’re premiering, “How Toxic Masculinity Dominated 2016,” to help spark a national conversation about toxic norms and how we as individuals and a society can do better. Please share this video on Twitter or Facebook, as a pledge to hold individuals, communities, and media accountable in addressing toxic masculinity. Together, let’s challenge and overcome this limiting and harmful culture in the new year.
Onwards,
Jennifer Siebel Newsom & The Representation Project Team
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Representation Around the Web
“Sadly, given what we’ve seen in this election, Mr. Trump’s victory has only amplified the voices of extremism. It has made their arguments more simplistic and more emotional at a time when they ought to be growing more subtle and more complex. We should give no quarter to intolerance and injustice in this world, but we can be steadfast on the subject of Mr. Trump’s unfitness for office while still reaching out to reason with his supporters. We can be unwavering in our commitment to racial equality while still breaking bread with the same racist people who’ve oppressed us. I know it can be done because I had no choice but to do it, and it is the reason I am where I am today.” – Trevor Noah, via The New York Times
- The Guardian: Hollywood’s Rape Culture is a Reflection of Our Culture
- NPR: John Glenn, First American to Orbit the Earth, Dies at 95
- Slate: Kellyanne Conway Suggests Men Don’t Want Their Wives to Work in the White House
- Time: The Women of the Standing Rock Movement
- Vox: Positive LGBTQ Representation in Media Really Can Change Lives. This Touching Story Proves It.
- The Washington Post: ‘No One Eats Alone’: Muslim-Owned Restaurant Offers Free Christmas Meal for Homeless, Elderly
HB493, also known as the “Heartbeat Bill,” passed in the Ohio State House this week. This bill includes language banning abortions once a heartbeat is detected at 6 weeks, a time when many women first find out they’re pregnant.
Image via Miss Representation‘s Instagram
