To me, meninism seems to be a complete misunderstanding, as many who agree with it seem to consider themselves as heroes of men's rights and warriors against the ghastly women who oppress them. What they don't seem to understand that feminism works for them, too. As a response to this, I thought that maybe I should clarify some real issues men have to deal with, rather than letting men be degraded by this new wave of 'meninism'. This post is very much inspired by a tweet I saw, but I can't remember who it was who tweeted it so just pretend I gave them credit.
The exclusion of trans-men:
The struggle for equal gender rights is often seen as a battle of the sexes, completely disregarding any other gender than cis-male and cis-female. Transfolk often have to deal with the fact that people mislabel them by deliberately using the wrong pronouns, dehumanising them and sometimes excluding them altogether. What people often forget is that you do not necessarily have to have a penis to be a man; if, biologically, you are a woman but you believe that you would prefer to identify as a man (and vice versa), then you are one, and anyone who disrespects that is the one in the wrong. Those who are transgender should not be persecuted for being so, and this is why trans-men should be very much included wherever the topic of men's rights is mentioned.
Gender stereotypes and emasculation:
Amongst feminists, the abolishment of gender stereotypes is a primary aim. Gender stereotypes cast chains around both men and women, and disallow individuality, diversity and anything that does not fit the mould. Men are frequently ridiculed for being "too feminine" (which is sexist in itself) and for partaking in anything remotely 'female'. Even trivial things such as being demonstrative and expressive are labelled as being 'in touch with your feminine side'. This belief is damaging as it restricts men from being open, which I believe is a factor towards why suicide is the 2nd most common cause of death amongst men aged 18-24 in the UK. Homophobia often links into this, with men who show any sign of emotion being branded as "faggots" (an offensive slur used to refer to gay people). If gender stereotypes are disbanded, all genders will be freed from the mould they supposedly must fit.
Disregard of male issues:
The only time I have ever seen men mention the subject of rape or domestic violence is to degrade or lessen the severity of that against women. Never have I heard a man openly condemn or even accept the fact that men can be raped, and men can be victims of domestic abuse. Once again, this is an example of the emasculation of men, as many believe these to be predominately female problems. Although the majority of rape/abuse cases are against women, it is still an issue for men and must be prevented.
In theory, meninism seems like a rebellion against the idea of female supremacy, however, it was born simply of a misunderstanding towards what feminism actually is. Feminism is about equal gender rights, which eliminates the need did 'meninism' in the first place. Furthermore, meninism seems to complain about trivial issues such as so-called 'double standards', yet completely disregards the need to rectify significant issues like the ones mentioned. If men's right activists educated themselves about the meaning of feminism, perhaps men's rights activists would not be needed at all, as feminists are gender rights activists and work for everyone.
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