Men’s crisis of identity is putting the brakes on gender equality

Last week, just before International Women’s Day, my mom shared with me a BBC interview with Julia Gillard, the former Australian prime minister and now chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, in which she discussed the backsliding of gender equality. What was discussed resonated with the concerns I have about the regression of gender equality and the risks it poses.

The interview referenced research by Ipsos and the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at King’s College London. It has found that “Gen Z males (born 1997-2012) were twice as likely as baby boomer men (born 1946-1964) to have traditional views on decision-making within a marriage, with just 13% of men in the older cohort agreeing that a wife should always obey her husband. Among women, 18% of Gen Z and 6% of baby boomers agreed.”

In 2019, 42% of people globally said ­women’s rights had gone far enough in their country, compared with 52% now.

It appears that constructions of masculinity have not evolved to meet today’s world, but stagnated instead, causing unease and arrested development. As someone who identifies as a feminist, this has been disheartening to see.

The issue of men feeling ignored or left behind has been widely discussed lately, but it deserves proper context. Although it is true that there need to be programmes for both men and women in terms of effectively instilling a culture of inclusivity, they need to be tailored differently, since men are coming from a position of privilege and need to unlearn a lot of the behaviours that come with privilege. A large part of this is the discomfort of having privilege taken away.

You see, it’s easy to claim you support a certain ideology, but truly doing so means accepting that the world will no longer automatically accept the dominant position that you have always occupied, where your needs, wants and desires are prioritised.

Conversely, this means that the needs, wants and desires of others will be prioritised collectively, coming from a position of being previously disempowered. However, this does not give women an unfair advantage. It is simply levelling the playing field, giving women access to the structural and systemic resources that have previously been the preserve of men.

The programmes that must come into effect for men and boys should explain and familiarise them with the unfolding process, fostering understanding rather than resentment. I recognise that these are the gaps that we should be seeking to close.

Gillard particularly spoke to the argument that others getting more means less for men, which I would say is true, but the key insight is that it is taking from men what has been disproportionately allocated to them.

The realisation that the roles men traditionally considered masculine are actually not just their preserve – and the same applies to women – because of access being levelled has created a crisis of identity and stability for men. As we have seen in history, when people’s long-held beliefs are threatened, they turn protectionist and lean towards conservative positions.

Our task is not to be drawn into false arguments of gender equality that leave others behind, but to focus on creating justice and equity for everyone. DM

Zukiswa Pikoli is Daily Maverick’s managing editor for Maverick Citizen and news.

This story first appeared in our weekly DM168 newspaper, available countrywide for R35.