A range of articles on male feminists, men supporting feminism, and so on have appeared in recent years. These populist articles have recurring themes regarding what men should do. Men should:
- Start with ourselves. Do the personal work of change. Assume that we’re part of the problem.
- Recognise and challenge institutionalised sexism and male privilege.
- Affirm and support women’s leadership.
- Listen to what women have to say.
- Educate ourselves regarding feminism.
- Avoid patriarchal practices in our support for feminism.
- Focus our efforts on challenging other men.
- Respect spaces which are women-only.
- Be accountable for our mistakes.
- Do the activist work.
- Hold each other to account.
For more on what men can and should do, see the XY collection here. Writings on men and feminism also identify typical problems in men’s relations to feminism. These include patterns where men:
- Are self-congratulory
- Use the feminist label to get sexual attention from women
- Have a commitment to feminism which vanishes when they are rejected by women
- Expect women to do the work of educating them
- Show a support for gender equality which is based entirely in, and stops with, support for the women and girls in their own lives
- And so on.
Here are a series of articles on men, feminism, and gender politics. The articles offer rich, diverse, humourous, and confronting accounts of men's roles in and for feminism. Suggestions for further inclusions are most welcome. (Note that some are hosted on other websites.)
Also see:
- The XY collection of pieces on what men can do about sexism and violence against women;
- This wide-ranging collection of materials on men's roles in building gender equality;
- This bibliography of scholarly / academic writing on men, feminism, and gender equality.
The articles:
- Aronowitz, Meet the woke misogynist March 13 2017
- Barker, On International Women's Day, Is There a Place for Men, 2014
- Barker, Being a male feminist - like being a white ally - isn't about making yourself feel better, October 30 2018
- Bates, Young, male and feminist 2015
- Bell, Men, Quit Being Freaked by Feminism and Join its Male Allies Oct 18 2015
- Belle Jar, Tired of Talking To Men, 2014
- Berlatsky, A Short History of Male Feminism June 12 2014
- Berlatsky, Can Men Really Be Feminists June 5 2014
- Bindel, Feminist fallacies - Men can be feminists, Aug, 3 2021
- Blau, 4 Reasons Why Feminism Is for Men, March 2016
- Bowling, Men Should Be Feminists, But Should They Call Themselves Feminists, Oct 3 2014
- Burger, Men Step Up to Support Women’s Rights, 2013
- Carmon, Women shouldn't trust the men who call themselves allies, Oct 10 2017
- Clark, 35 Practical Steps Men Can Take To Support Feminism, June 2014
- Clark, 35 Practical Tools for Men to Further Feminist Revolution, May 28 2014
- Clifton, So You Want to Be a Male Feminist, Jan 10 2015
- Cornwall, Boys and men must be included in the conversation on equality, March 2012
- Crowe, Should Men Call Themselves Feminists?, 2019
- Cueto, Emma, 10 Ways Men Can Be Feminist Allies Because Yes Feminism Is For Everybody, Oct 17 2015
- Dean, Asking if men can be feminists is a pointless distraction, Aug 5 2014
- Ditum, The problem with men participating in feminism, Oct 26 2015
- Dodd, Stop Dude Feminists, Nov 25 2015
- Dunne, On power, voice, and male feminists. Blog - The F-Word
- Elliott, Can men be feminists, April 23 2008
- Fabello, Beware These 10 Types of Feminist Men, Aug 8 2016
- Flood, Can men be feminists?, 2001
- Flood, Living a profeminist life, 2007
- Ford, Feminists don't need to say 'but I love men', Oct 21 2014
- Ford, Help us change the world just don't expect a cookie
- Ford, It's not enough for men to turn up, March 13 2015
- Ford, What does it mean to be a 'good man', 2014
- Frantz, 11 Ways Men Can Be Better Feminist Allies, July 2012
- Funk, Men in feminism
- Funnell, Why does it take boys talking feminism to have a viral video hit
- Gillard, Gender equality is not a ‘women’s issue’ – it’s good for men too, 2019
- Gilmore, When men claim to be feminists just to abuse women March 15 2017
- Gordon-Levitt, So you want to be a male feminist Oct 21 2014;
- Grey, I’m Suspicious of Male “Feminists” — And You Should Be Too, July 13 2015
- Grollman, A Gay Guy's Guide To Feminism - A Brief Introduction, 2013
- Hamad, Men who want to lead the fight for women's rights, April 14 2015
- Hess, Male Allies, Confusing for feminism, 2014
- Jones, My 'crisis of masculinity' and how feminism set me free May 20 2013;
- Kivel, Guidelines for Challenging Sexism, 2007
- Klement, From faux-feminist to pro-feminist, 1996
- Maynard, Why Men Should Support Feminism, FWSA Blog April 2014
- McDonough, Men can be feminists but it’s actually really hard work. Salon June 2014
- McEwan, Feminism 101 - Helpful Hints for Dudes, Parts 1-6
- Moore, Beware the Self-Proclaimed Male Feminist Dec 2015;
- Murphy, Five reasons Matt McGorry's 'feminism' isn't helping, 2016
- Newman, Why I am a feminist man
- Nguyen, The Fake Male Feminist Chicanery, 2013
- O'Malley, Harris, What's really wrong with 'nice guys' Jan 6 2015;
- O'Neill, Lisa, Dear Men Who Wish to Be Allies to Women 12 Things You Need to Know
- Okun, Men Also Share Fruits of Women's Equality Day. August 24, 2007
- Onne, Men - Feminism needs you
- Peretz, A Letter to Aspiring (Male) Feminists. PrimeMind, 2016
- Plait, Not all men - How discussing women’s issues gets derailed
- Plank, 23 Ways Feminism Has Made the World a Better Place for Men, May 3 2015
- Rankin, Feminism Needs Men, Too, 2013
- Ratchford, Sarah, On Feminism A How-to Guide for Dudes June 13 2014;
- Reid, Why is the bar for male feminism set so painfully low 2017;
- Ritchie, Should Men Call Themselves Pro-Feminist Instead of Feminist, 2016
- Ruxton, What is the role of men in feminism?, March 4 2020
- Said, On Allyship and the Danger of Faux Male Feminists, Oct 16 2020
- Serrano, 11 Simple Things Men Can Do for Feminism, April 6 2017;
- Solnit, Feminism, Now with Men. Guernica, Nov 2015
- Spence, Men - accept that feminism isn't about you 2014.
- Spruce, Why Feminism Benefits Men, Oct 15 2012
- Strudwick, In Defence Of Prancing, Effeminate Men 2015;
- Talley, Faux Feminist Men, April 18 2011
- Tarrant, Why Men Can Be Good for Feminism, Aug 8 2013
- Tatum, This Is Why Being a Nice Guy Just Isn't Enough, April 20 2015
- The feminist man. Livemint India, Nov 7 2015
- Thomson, Can men be feminists, Sept 21 2012
- Thorpe, 5 Misconceptions About Male Feminists That Need To Go, 2016
- Utt, 30 Ways To Be a Better Ally in 2015, Jan 14 2014
- Utt, A New Masculinity Why I Need Feminism as a Man, May 27 2014
- Utt, Abusive Feminist Men Exist - Here Are 6 Things Men Can Do to Stop Them, Dec 14 2014
- Utt, Can men be feminists, May 2015
- van der Gaag, Between the devil and the deep blue sea, 2015
- Weiss, 9 Reasons feminist men are better in bed, Nov 25 2015
- Williams, Yes, men, you can be feminists, 2014
- Winterfox, Feminists are not responsible for educating men