In late November, a man deliberately ran over a woman and dragged her for more than a kilometer. Her legs were amputated. Cases of acute violence continue to appear, increasing the statistics of femicide in Brazil. It might be worth looking at this as a deeper problem. The great transition experienced by society deserves a broader political vision.
- German inspiration: Fachin asks his STF colleagues to move forward on a proposed code of conduct for ministers
In the United States, the debate is intense, as Oliver Stuenkel shows. What is happening to men, analysts ask? They perform lower in schools and universities, suffer more from depression and alcoholism, and are more prone to political radicalism. One of the most violent sectors of the far right is that of involuntary celibates (incels), who attack feminists on social networks, blaming them for their romantic failure. They inspired a young man who killed ten people in Toronto.
- Rio Assembly: The Alerj plenary decides to revoke Bacellar’s arrest; see how each MP voted
Conservatives believe the way forward is to limit women’s professional and educational advancement. According to them, this affects the masculine image, based on the expectation of higher salaries and less time for domestic work. The problem is that the genie can no longer return to the lamp. Two out of five American families have a woman as the breadwinner.
As Stuenkel shows in an article on the American crisis, the solutions presented so far to the problem are not very effective. The book “Masculinity,” by Senator Josh Hawley, offers courage and resilience, advice that applies to all men and women.
In the case of Brazil, there is still a need to promote policies that guarantee equal conditions for women. And above all try to mitigate violence during this period of great transition. One of the paths that seems correct to me since the last century is the creation of shelters for battered women. They have to leave the house. Forced to live with the attacker, many are murdered.
But there is still no thought about what to do with the male crisis, which, thanks to the Internet, is becoming very similar to that in the United States. The man who attacked Janja’s website said he knew about incels. There are many reasons to try to resolve the male crisis as part of an irreversible transition. The most important thing is to prevent women from suffering. The other, more strategic, is to prevent this masculine frustration from being channeled by the far right and revealing itself as one of its most combative wings.
The wave of violence against women is only one aspect of this immense crisis. We are right in the middle, we do not have ready-made solutions, but the debate must begin. Among the paths that have emerged, the radicalization of incels is the most dangerous. A conservative return to traditional domestic life is increasingly unlikely in the face of changes in society. All that remains is constructive adaptation, through a cultural struggle in which healthy models of masculinity are reinforced, and educational work taking into account the fact that boys and girls face specific problems, without renouncing female achievements.
About The Author
