Men and Feminism: Some challenges and a partial response

Feminism brings a focused and specialised perspective to discussions of social justice. It focuses specifically on women’s interests, experiences and concerns. In this respect, the feminist movement seeks to bring to light gendered issues that are overlooked or underemphasised within mainstream debates. Another way of putting this is that feminism is gynocentric: it is a response to the androcentrism of mainstream culture, including prevailing views of justice and fairness. This article considers a particular issue arising from the specialised nature of feminist discourse: namely, the relationship of men to feminism. Relatively few men exhibit active support for feminism, while many men express negative attitudes towards the feminist movement.

This article discusses two of the main challenges men face in understanding and engaging with feminist concerns. It then offers some tentative recommendations as to the types of attitudes and practices men might adopt to effectively advance the feminist project.

Please see below for the full article, in PDF. Republished with permission from Social Alternatives, 30(1), 2011.