I'm new here, what percent of this place think women are a marginalized group in our society but that there is also issues that effect men and what percent think men are an oppressed group?

hardwarequestions · 2011-09-28T22:46:23+00:00

Both men and women face gender discrimination of various sorts. The difference is that while discrimination against women is widely acknowledged as a problem and extensive efforts are made to remedy it, the very existence of discrimination against men is generally denied, and when admitted, it is usually ignored.

The basis for the denial of anti-male discrimination is not a lack of factual support, because there is massive evidence for it. Rather it is an ideology that asserts as an axiom of faith that we live in a patriarchal society whereby all men are privileged and all women oppressed. And by this axiom men cannot be discriminated against as males. This ideology is accepted on faith despite all evidence to the contrary.

This ideology is promulgated by most flavors of feminists and their supporters. This "patriarchy hypothesis" is a fundamental axiom of most feminist writing, and underlies most of their political, legal, and judicial activism. Because the 'patriarchy hypothesis' is used to deny the existence of discrimination against men, and because feminists are the primary advocates of this hypothesis, femininsts in general are despised in this forum.

Feminists are seen as the enemy because most of them insist on formulating all gender issues in the framework of male oppression and female victimization, and are unable to see any discrimination that falls outside of this framework.

You will notice my careful use of "most" and "many" above. I believe there are a growing number of feminists who are starting to become sympathetic to the gender issues that men face, and who are rejecting the strict patriarchy hypothesis framework for gender issues. However, I think these feminists are still a minority. And many MRAs believe that no one who calls themselves a feminist can be a friend to men or an ally of men's rights.

Il128 · 2011-09-29T01:49:21+00:00

Until men learn that they are not the caretakers of women, men will self perpetuate their own discrimination. Men are the main discriminators against men, that isn't irony, that is a fact.

roland3337 · 2011-09-29T04:53:57+00:00

"Hi I'm new here and I have a question about the MRM...would you say that men/women are more/less__________ in society?"

Is anyone else getting tired of this?

A_Nihilist · 2011-09-29T02:46:56+00:00

Everyone faces some form of discrimination. The problem is, ironically enough, feminists use a gender role from their "patriarchy", that men should never complain about anything, to shut men up under the guise that they're "privileged", thereby granting resources almost exclusively to women.

thingsarebad · 2011-09-28T23:31:13+00:00

I don't think there are any 'Oppressed' or 'Privileged' groups, but there are certainly individuals.

IncrediblyFatMan · 2011-09-29T10:16:27+00:00

In our western, first world society, women are not a marginalized group. Everywhere you go, it's women' this, women's that. There's all sorts of government offices specifically just to cater to what women wants and need, and of course none for men.

Men are in fact facing codified discrimination in our society. It's right in the legislation. You have countries like Sweden that were seriously considering a... "Man Tax." As in the idea wasn't laughed right out for being bigoted.

You might have a case if you talk about a third world country, where everyone except the rich elite has it pretty bad.

memymineown · 2011-09-28T23:53:06+00:00

Both men and women face gender discrimination. But in the west, where most people who read this live, discrimination against men is far worse and far more widespread.

pcarvious · 2011-09-29T04:58:04+00:00

Discrimination happens in different places and different ways. Depending on the frame of reference and the context of the situation, one group can move from oppressor to being oppressed very quickly. Subtle changes in power dynamics are often summed up in terms of their final result and not the actions or steps that created that result. I can claim that the damn fell down because water was pushing against it. I can also claim that the damn shouldn't have fallen down because it always holds back water. If there's a crack in the damn, or the foundation has shifted, then there is another root cause that should be considered in the result. However, rarely is it ever looked at in terms of the whole picture.

There are a lot of protections regarding discrimination that women can use now. There are few that men can use. There are social perceptions that favor women and social perceptions that favor men. Right now though, if I had to make a claim about who has it worse I would say this: The group that is the most discriminated against is the one that is blamed out of context for the actions taken of another subset. I would also say that society is more forgiving of women than men when it comes to the actions of peers reflecting back on the individual.

I'm new here, what percent of this place think women are a marginalized group in our society but that there is also issues that effect men and what percent think men are an oppressed group?

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