#GamerGate and Masculinity

I’ll admit, I played a ton of video games as a kid. I got the Super Nintendo one Christmas and some of my fondest memories have been around those experiences. And maybe some of my most shameful. I remember turning the game off on my friend because he was about to beat me in Tecmo Super Bowl. Not cool…

Either way, I understand how video games can become part of our identity. When we pour a bunch of hours into anything and feel a sense of accomplishment, it’s impossible to deny that video games have some level of influence over who we are.

And since video games are also a form of media, it warrants just as much critique and examination as our favorite TV shows and movies. One of the most well-known critiques comes from feminist

Halloween! Have fun AND do work

Men. I know we’re action oriented. I know how you feel when you just want to DO something about the injustices and inequities stacked against women. Well it’s Halloween tonight and you have the opportunity to do just that. Tonight is typically a street harassment fest. You will hear men (and your friends) say

UPDATE: Check out our Upcoming Events page for more recent information on our open events!

Tonight is the second session of Men in the Movement's Men in Media Series! This interactive, discussion based workshop is open to students, staff, and faculty of all genders. We'll be examining two very popular TV series, "How I Met Your Mother" and "Big Bang Theory". Not only will you pick up some skills in critically consuming media, we'll have facilitated discussion about the messages we receive about masculinity from these shows. We will be in Clark C146 from 7-8PM tonight, Thursday, October 2nd. Can't wait to see you there!

The Effects of Accountability: Illuminating the Dark Corner of Male Entitlement

A recent article in The Chronicle of Higher Education (trigger warning) tells a story of something we as Men in the Movement have to be prepared to engage in conversation. The title is “Presumed Guilty: College men accused of rape say the scales are tipped against them” and I have no doubt that the recent spotlight on how Universities “handle” sexual assault cases will get students to talk about it. Which is good. And it doesn’t hurt to be prepared for when this happens with your friends.

It’s a lengthy article, but I highly suggest reading to at least the third picture. It has a lot of information that would be tough to summarize here. But one of the biggest take-aways is

Everyday Violations of Consent: The Theft (not “leak”) of Personal Pictures

Recent internet buzz is surrounding pictures of celebrities that were taken without consent. A typical headline looks like this:

“Nude photos of Jennifer Lawrence and other female celebrities leaked online”

First and foremost, they weren't leaked, they were stolen. We’ll get to that later.

I want to highlight some of the things that other writers/bloggers have said. Both Jessica Valenti and this man (I assume it’s a man…) have named that the allure of these particular nude photos is specifically that they were obtained without consent. Valenti and Erin Gloria Ryan talk about how deeply victim blaming the reaction has been.

I have to admit, the high school me would have rushed

Why it’s important for Men in the Movement to talk about Eliot Rodger

On Saturday, May 24^th, 2014, Elliot Rodger killed six people and himself in Isla Vista, California outside of the University of California, Santa Barbara. The initial coverage of the incident indicated that Rodger was a White male. But according to his manifesto, Rodger identifies as “Eurasian”. Both mainstream coverage and the blogosphere did not dive into the nuances of mixed race masculinity, which in this case was an integral component missing from the overall discussion about violent masculinity and misogyny in our culture. As members of Men in the Movement, we need to bring these issues to the forefront.

However, making the connection between mixed race identity and masculinity can be difficult. My purpose today is to provide context, insight, and language around the nuances of mixed masculinity. I will do this by talking about my personal experience as well as my thoughts on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto so that we can begin to have these conversations in our communities. To do this, I will start with basic gender socialization, then move into how that is complicated by race, while talking about how that has personally affected me. From there, I will talk about Rodger’s Manifesto from a mixed race male perspective.