Recently a new movement of men and women who identify as ‘Meninists’ has gained both publicity in the media and a following. But who are Meninists, and are they related to feminists? The answer can be found in the Meninist Facebook bio which says, “Sarcastically fighting for mens’ rights… with the help of the official Twitter Meninist account!” Likewise, the Menimist Twitter bio states, “(parody), obviously sarcasm.” So at first glance, Menimists are a group joined by a sense of humor that amplifies the attitudes that feminists are working their hardest to change. Doesn’t that sound hilarious…? (queue the laughter)
If you scroll through the Meninists’ Facebook page, you’ll find a string of jokes that sound something like this:
[Warning: Content May Be Triggering]
- “How many feminists does it take to change a light bulb? None, they can’t change anything.”
- “Never look a feminist in the eyes or she will accuse you of rape.”
- “Most women look for a man with a good personality, a sense of humor and a career, because opposites attract.”
- “Any cup size below a C is unimportant.”
- “How many f**ks should you give about a female’s opinion? A: 0 B: A C: All of the above.”
Taking a look at their ramblings, it’s clear that Meninism is all negativity. Opponents of the movement also argue that Meninists spend all of their time and energy mocking sexual assault and the like without ever touching on male rights. @queen feminist calls Meninists out with her tweet: “Where are the meninists fighting for trans men? MOC? gay men? Male victims of rape? Are they just too busy harassing feminists online?“
I agree with @queenfeminist. Menimists seem to serve only as a misogynistic support group, as a form of opposition, and as another obstacle in the road of gender equality. Maybe their claims that they are a gender-equality support movement are another facet of their long-winded joke?
These Meninist social media accounts justify their harassment of women by stating repeatedly that, ‘It’s a joke. Feminists can’t take a joke’, and followers like @WelfareFTW on twitter agree, “Do feminists not realize that “meninists” was a concept to mock them with? They aren’t real.”
I think that their jokes are too offensive to be funny, and the general public agrees. Even knowing that they’re joking, what Meninists joke about and how they do it is entirely too offensive not to cause a negative response.
We can’t be completely sure whether Meninists are serious, but we can definitely agree that the Meninism movement isn’t what progress in favor of equality looks like. In fact, it can be easily argued as regression. Meninists can go on the defense with ‘it’s just humor‘, but it isn’t funny to those who are for women empowerment.
For the record, it isn’t that feminists are too uptight to laugh at things; it’s that the underpinnings of those jokes are seriously offensive. I do believe that some of the followers are not seriously supporting these ideas, and to those people I say, please realize that if this is just humor in your mind, it is still highly offensive humor that undermines the gender equality movement. Don’t let these jokes desensitize you to that fact. I believe that the other half of the followers of these Meninist social media accounts are misogynists. The accounts are created and supported by misogynists who are clinging onto outdated perspectives, perspectives vehemently againist the motion for gender equality, and they’re allowed to voice those beliefs just as much as feminists are allowed to fight them every step of the way. Leaving one thing for you to decide for yourself: which side are you on?
