May not exactly be entirely topical for this sub but I think it fits in a way. We always hear constantly about respecting women and girls, but practically never anything about men and boys, which is arguably misandrist in and of itself and has no doubt only contributed to socially acceptable misandry for years and even decades by now.

I get so irritated whenever I hear about respecting women and girls, and downright furious when I see things like boys in schools being taught to have respect for women and girls, but absolutely nothing about girls also being taught to respect men and boys. Respect is always earned, never given, and it goes for both men and women alike. Some of the worst and most unrespectable people I've ever had the displeasure of knowing have been women, and for so many years it's been ingrained and enforced in society that women are always to be unconditionally respected just for the sake of it and not because they're good people who've actually earned it. We never hear anything about also having respect for men and boys, and we wonder why there's such a bad male mental health problem.

I think enforcing the notion of respecting women just for the sake of it is definitely sexist and so is respecting men for the sake of it. Respect is always earned and never automatically granted on the basis of gender. I respect good men and women alike who've both earned it and deserve it, and have nothing but disdain for bad men and women who don't conduct themselves in a good or respectable manner at all. Plus saying to respect women no matter what is sexist in and of itself, because aren't there also men who deserve respect? Even a bad or outright evil woman is to be respected? You mean to tell me I should have respect for a woman like Amber Heard or Ghislaine Maxwell, even when they've done the horrible things they did? Or women who spout hateful rhetoric like Ann Coulter, Marjorie Greene, Tomi Lahren, etc. or whackjob feminists like Charlotte Proudman or Emrazz (just look at their Twitter posts if you can stomach it, ugh). I have less than zero respect for these women. I respect women who actually deserve it and have earned it, I don't automatically grant it to women like these.

I think this sends an awful message to impressionable young girls too because it instills a sense of entitlement to being given respect and special treatment on the basis of gender and that males are not to be regarded with any sort of respect or kindness. Sends an awful message to boys too, who are regularly being bombarded with so much misandry and not given any sort of encouragement or empowerment at all and are basically being told they don't deserve respect. I have to wonder if this whole "respect women" notion is a major reason why some male victims of female criminals never come forward with their stories, particularly boys, when men and boys alike are victimized and harmed by women at much higher rates than believed or reported. Young males are so bombarded with the "respect women" nonsense that if they've been violated or harmed in anyway by a woman or girl they feel it's disrespectful to report her and somehow it's okay if it's done by a female when it's wrong either way. I think arguably it's another way of how so many bad women are absolved of any sort of accountability and responsibility.

I think respect for anyone, male and female alike, always has to be earned. You don't automatically command it for being male or female. I get so irritated whenever I see or hear anything about respecting women because gender alone never warrants automatic respect. Respect good and respectable men and women alike, that's all. If "respect men" were a thing as well I'd honestly also take issue with it for the reasons I outlined before. Respecting someone just because of gender isn't only sexist but arguably dangerous as well.