NGM Thoughts 16: The Root of It
Why is it that fathers polish their shotguns when their daughters invite a new boyfriend over? Why do we not want our girlfriends to work in the service industry? Why do we all nod our heads when we hear about ‘locker room talk?’ Why is it that we feel #MeToo allegations are a threat to men at large rather than predators that abuse their power?
Because boys will be boys.
As men, we inherently know that the code that we were conditioned in—the socialization with our peers, the rites of passage, the posturing, the conversations, the measures of merit—has programmed us to objectify women and treat bodies as something to be sought and conquered.
Did you ‘get it’ last night? Oh yeah, I ‘tapped that’—it doesn’t exactly invoke a feeling that there was another person involved in that.
If we know this, then let’s not stifle the women we love with our ‘protection,’ but rather, let’s better the men that they encounter.
Written by Next Gen Men Co-Founder Jake Stika as part of a personal challenge to share some of our reflections around what it means to be a better man in today’s day and age. Join us every Friday for NGM Thoughts.