A Call to MEN

By Jahnasia Booker

 

 

What does it mean to be a man? There are few ladies out there that would love to listen to this show. Here, Ted Bunch challenges the socialization of what it means to be a man. His organization “A Call to MEN” encourages men to redefine man hood and Bunch tells us how the notions of masculinity affects how men treat women. 

 

“On some level, we all have been taught three things we call manhood [or defines manhood]… we have a concept that we call the ‘man box,’ and breaking out of the ‘man box’… [One lesson we are taught] is that women and girls have less value than men and boys. 

 

That man box is about being aggressive. Men are taught that women have less value than men. Young men are receiving the notion that women have less value. For instance, when a young boy is growing up in the game of sports and his coach says “you have to throw harder than that son! You shoot like a little girl!” This  displays to the young man that however a girl throws a ball, he does not want to throw like that because “throwing like a girl” is not good. 

 

 

Another way in which manhood is defined is property. Men believe that a woman is the property of men. 

 

The last objectification, we are taught to objectify a woman. Women do not have the same value as men. By labeling a woman as an object, men feel as though he is dominant. 

 

Both men and women may need to shift their perspective of manhood. Living in the “man box” causes men to hinder themselves from expressing themselves like women. Men cannot express their emotions like a woman because they would be considered week. 

 

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a good conversation for you all today! Listen more to Ted Bunch now! 

August 2, 2013