Man’s World | Woman’s Earth: Be a Protector, not a Predator
If you haven’t already, read the foundation of my philosophy here.
I spend a lot of time on the internet.
I admittedly have a social media problem, and with that I stumble across a lot of articles, and a lot of opinions on those articles.
With awareness of sexual harassment on the rise, as are new and different ways women can protect themselves. From code words that will get you an Uber to nail polish that changes color if you dip it in a roofied drink, there is a growing number of innovations available to help women protect themselves.
Considering the vulnerable nature of women, you’d think it’s great that there are more and more ways for us to protect ourselves; however, a common phrase that is frequently quoted in tweets linked to these new innovations is the following:
Stop telling women to protect themselves and just teach your sons to not assault us!
Hmm.
Let me re-apply this logic to another common hazard.
Stop telling children to yell “Stranger Danger,” and just teach people to not kidnap children!
See my point?
This is just another way that Third Wave Feminism falls into a previously mentioned logical flaw: The Is-Ought Fallacy.
I’ll let you read about that on your own; it’s not the focus of my argument, but it is (always) relevant.
The problem with this common Feminist “solution” is obvious: those who regularly assault, harass, and disrespect women will likely continue to do so. Those who don’t, won’t.
This phrase doesn’t ring an alert in anyone’s heads and is therefore ineffective from every angle (except for getting Retweets from Russian bots. But that, too, is aside the point of my argument).
In other words, nothing changes.
Whenever I’m talking to one of my guy friends about the perpetual state of fear that women live in, I’m always surprised to see their shock.
Walking with a man — any man, whether it be a boyfriend, a male friend, a brother, a father — is like having a forcefield around you. The man usually is completely unaware of the amount of protection he is adding to your experience. Obviously, men are not there for protection when women walk alone, so they don’t witness the difference of behavior of other men between when a woman is walking alone versus when a man is walking with them. Therefore, men don’t realize the amount of danger women are constantly in, nor do they realize the amount of protection their mere presence provides.
I am always humbled witnessing the reactions of men when I tell them about this. They really don’t know. This is why I’m a little disturbed when I see the constant fruitless Feminist propaganda demanding for an end to sexual harassment without implementing any type of education, reality check, or even simple acknowledgement of the genuine differences in experiences between the genders.
Men do not realize how much assault, harassment, and overall fear of men women experience on the daily. Most men are pretty good guys. Most men are ready to be on our side — they just don’t know that we need them, let alone do they know how to be on our side.
So rather than a tweet asking predators to stop predating, here is my alternative call to action:
Men, rather than simply “not assaulting” women, I urge you to take an active role in protecting the women around you.
I ask that you increase your awareness of the fear element in the Female Experience, as well as the amount of protection you bring. Walk your female friends to their cars. Be aware of women who are by themselves in public situations. Keep an eye on the suspicious guy looking curiously at the unattended drink at the bar.
No need to police, nor is there a need to act like anyone’s dad. All I ask is that you integrate your newfound knowledge of the female experience into your perception, and act accordingly.
Read next: Man’s World | Woman’s Earth: Sexual Energy
