I’m saying this in response to this post: https://www.reddit.com/r/MensRights/comments/q6ednh/this_mom_teaches_her_daughter_to_kick_boys_in_the/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

The article shared in the post was misinterpreted by several of the top comments. While parts of it are poorly written, the core of it advocates for kicking boys in the balls when they’re smacking or hitting a girls butt. When it comes to bullying any reasonable behavior that causes someone to stop is allowed.

Many comments reacted in fear that the girl would abuse this power and use it on boys who made verbal offenses. If that happens, the boy is entitled to hit her in self defense. If he’s punished for reasonable self defense, then that’s wrong and that’s another issue entirely, we can talk about the double standard of male/female violence all day.

If she finds it funny, that’s wrong. Again that’s a separate issue. Accusing someone of being or perpetrating a behavior without evidence is wrong. This mom or girl didn’t yet do any of things these comments feared.

The comments took an issue about a girl being bullied, pursued, harassed and hijacked it to make it about the bullying boys that would potentially face retaliation for their actions. This sub preaches accountability, if a boy is worried about a girl kicking him in the balls, he should’ve thought of that before harassing her.

And yes, smacking a girl’s butt is harmful. Sexual violence outside of prisons overwhelmingly happens to females, in the same way that suicide, murder, and workplace death primarily happens to males. We don’t get to decide how harmful that can end up being to a six year old girl, and if she needs to fight back like this, so be it

This is the caricature of the sub that a lot of people think it is. Hypocrisy, misinterpretation, a lack of nuance, are thing we criticize mainstream feminism for, but if you want to criticize them the minimum requirement is being better than them.

I don’t say this because I hate this sub, far from it. I appreciate the men and women on this sub providing nuanced takes. But please stop taking everything at face value