As a man with no daughters, here are my views on feminism (New Statesman)

[MCBeatsandGrindah]

As a response to the Weinstein stuff and the statements from the "men who have daughters" tribe. Just thought I'd share.

www.newstatesman.com/politics/feminism/2017/10/man-no-daughters-here-are-my-views-feminism

[AssassinatedBeauty]

Well, yes, that makes sense, but they're essentially advertising that they had limited empathy for 50% of the world population until they had a daughter. It's a bit of a shit admission and they shouldn't be lauded or congratulated for their very belated awareness.

[NewDaddie]

I enjoyed it, it made me laugh and cringe at myself, especially the dd being an extension of myself bit.

[NewDaddie]

I think it was intended to be satire assassinated

[cheminotte]

He's absolutely right. The idea that men can only feel empathy if they imagine that it was their mother / daughter / sister should be nonsense. But unfortunately men with daughters do make better bosses (insert study link here).

[AssassinatedBeauty]

@NewDaddie I don't think @morningrunner 's post was meant to be satirical?

[NoLoveofMine]

Well, yes, that makes sense, but they're essentially advertising that they had limited empathy for 50% of the world population until they had a daughter. It's a bit of a shit admission and they shouldn't be lauded or congratulated for their very belated awareness.

I concur.

I also thought the article wasn't bad and made a good point. As I've posted before, I talk to my dad a lot about feminism and issues related to it and one of the things I've said as well is that I wouldn't want him to care because of my existence (as the article was speaking of, because he has a daughter). I'm glad I'm able to raise these issues to him and that he listens and engages but he (and others) should care because women shouldn't suffer misogyny, not because one woman shouldn't suffer misogyny and in a world women do it's highly likely she will. That said, I understand the value of maybe personalising feminism to men who might not otherwise register how important it is and making them consider certain issues with regards to their daughters if they have one isn't something I'd completely dismiss. However, as the article deals with, this implies other men should/will be oblivious, dismissive or not care at all about misogyny and discrimination against women and girls. The "if it was your daughter" line suggests misogyny only matters when it affects their own offspring, that it was fine for every other woman or girl to suffer it but not for her. This I don't think really works towards truly combating misogyny and misogynist attitudes.

[drwitch]

I think the daughters thing simply makes the point that there are not two types of women: sex objects and people like our daughters. Seems unbelievable that it needs saying but hey ho

[NewDaddie]

Apologies assassinated I misunderstood your first post

[theendisnotnigh]

I'm not sure how I feel about the article. My only reference point is that once I became a parent I understood that there was now someone in the world that I would kill for to protect? That I would do anything to protect this child. And that I had completely failed to understand the power of your love for your child - - until I became a parent. And i do think that it shifts your world view a bit.
So I suppose at a gut level, I can understand what he says? But it also reads like so many conversations with men in meetings -'I don't know anything about this but ...... mansplain, mansplain, mansplain.....'.

[OlennasWimple]

I know a fair few men who only felt any feminist awakenings after they had daughters. Or, rather, men who would actually stick their neck out and take action to advance women's equality (like our friend who complained repeatedly to the manufacturer of cricket gear that they labelled everything "Small Boy" rather than "Small Youth" like others)

Similarly, I now understand white privilege in a whole new way now that I have lived in places with a much starker white / black divide than the bits of the UK that I had lived in previously. It doesn't mean that I was a racist before, but I have an understanding of race issues now that I just didn't before it was part of my lived experience.