Men are manliest when they are comfortable in their own masculinity—unrestricted from whatever societal norms imposes on them.
Harry Styles, musical artist and dress enthusiast, graced the cover of Vogue Magazine this past weekend with a variety of looks ranging from standard sheik to embracing femininity within men. The photos needlessly sparked a conversation among conservative men and women, notably Ben Shapiro and Candace Owens, both conservative political commentators, about the downfall of so-called “manly men.”
“There is no society that can survive without strong men,” Owens stated on Twitter. “The steady feminization of our men at the same time that Marxism is being taught to our children is not a coincidence. It is an outright attack. Bring back manly men.”
I am, quite frankly, sick of the constantly perpetuated notion that men need to be manly. What does it even to be manly? There is no clear definition of that attribute which encompasses all men. Are men supposed to be the provider? Are men supposed to show no weakness? Are men supposed to be unbridled in testosterone? Says who, and why?
I’ve experienced this same outside pressure to conform to the mold of what people think a man should be. I experienced it throughout high school, and I still do today. It’s incredibly damaging. It’s damaging for one’s mental psyche and for the future of men’s mental health. We are more than just men, we are human.
Humans are meant to be vulnerable. We are meant to express ourselves in any way we see fit. We are meant to just be, no matter sex or gender.
These stereotypes people try to emplace on men have terrible consequences. The number one biggest killer of men under 45 is suicide. In America alone, men are 3.5 times more likely to die by suicide than women, as reported by BBC. Men’s mental health has gone vastly unnoticed. We’ve been told our whole lives we’re supposed to just be a man and toughen up.
Now I’m not silly enough to think opposition of men being more feminine is directly causing a severe drop in men’s mental health. However, it’s characteristic of the reasons why it is occurring. Men do not, and have never, needed to be put into a box of what they are and aren’t supposed to be. What they are or aren’t supposed to wear. And how they are or aren’t supposed to act.
Let men be whoever they want. You can be whoever you want.
Carter Kolpitcke can be reached at [email protected]