Definition and Examples of Misandry

What is misandry?

Misandry is the hatred for all people who are men or boys. 

Misandry exists as a type of prejudice against the male gender and can become apparent in various ways. It can exist in violent acts, sexual objectification, workplace discrimination and more.

In comparison with misogyny, or the hatred of and discrimination against women, the term misandry refers to the that of men.

History of misandry:

The term has been around since 1898, according to Merriam Webster dictionary.

Some believe misandry has, for a very long time, had an impact on society, in which men have been attributed as the inferior and morally deficient members of society by misandrists. 

Philosopher and writer Helene von Druskowitz wrote a radically feminist response in 1905 to an male, anti-feminist writer’s work. Titled, “Pessimistic Cardinal Propositions — Man as a Logical and Moral Impossibility,” she wrote a futuristic depiction in which men destroyed the world. And she outlined how the same world would prosper if led and inhabited only by women. 

More than 60 years later, the SCUM Manifesto by Valerie Jean Solanas was written and expressed similar ideas — which hadn’t been done since Helene von Druskowitz. 

Modern misandry:

Misandry has been a topic of conversation in more recent years with the increasing intensity of the feminist movement. Men have begun associating feminism with misandry and citing more radical versions of feminism that discuss a hatred for men in addition to an all-encompassing support of women. 

Certain examples of what are being dubbed misandrist speak may include any overgeneralization of the male, involving their likes, dislikes, their interests, their motivations, their sex lives, etc. Examples of other labeled misandrist speak:

• “All men care about is sex.”
• “Men don’t respect the female opinion.”
• “Man up.”
• “He doesn’t care about me because I am a woman.”

And more.

In a 2016 Psychology Today article titled, “Misandry: the Invisible Hatred of Men,” Joe Kort, a psychoanalyst, wrote about the discrimination men face every day that he believes most people do not see and the media does not recognize. 

Kort cites a conversation he heard in which women called the male genitalia disgusting, which he believed to be misandrist speak. “If a woman overheard men talking about vaginas being dirty and disgusting, she’d surely think this was misogyny and microaggression, but why not the other way around?” he asked.

Kort went on to say that most women are not aware of their misandry — a trend he said he had been noticing more and more. 

Misandry came into the news more recently, in October of 2018, when the United Kingdom began considering whether offenses driven by misandry should be labeled as hate crimes. 

The UK Law Commission included men in their discussion of whether certain groups could be covered by and included in hate crime legislation. The other groups included the elderly and goths.

The consideration has feminist activist groups in fear that men’s rights activist groups may begin abusing the laws in place to protect marginalized groups of people against discrimination.

Which introduces another topic of discussion:

Is misandry not taken as seriously as misogyny? 

In certain ways, misandry and men’s rights activists are similar to that of caucasian activists. The most discernible and horribly effective discrimination exists in the marginalized groups of people in society, not in that of white males. 

This view of discrimination aligns with intersectional feminism. While all women experience more discrimination than men, women of color and LGBTQ women experience even higher levels of discrimination than white women. 

While discrimination against men may exist, the debate begins when creating a comparison between misogyny and misandry. What is the ratio of discrimination effects men experience versus women? 

Men point to angry feminists and shout the word “misandry” — but are they actually losing promotions at work because of their gender? Are they making less money on average? Are they treated differently, patronized, or spoken to condescendingly? 

These are the questions being brought up when discussing the prevalence of misandry in 2019.

Angry feminists and misandry

The term misandry has gained popularity in recent years along with the rise of female activism for feminism and equality. 

Men began associating modern feminism with the hatred of men. One of the most popular criticisms of feminism is that it marginalizes and discriminates against men, even though the true definition of feminism is in fighting for equality between men and women.

With the attachment of man-haters to feminists began a trend of ironic male hatred, which was written about on various outlets including this piece by Slate in 2014. 

After so frequently and aggressively being accused of hating men on social media and other parts of the Internet, women began embracing the criticism. Which, of course, came equipped with memes, T-shirts, keychains, and more. 

Female activists began sipping coffee out of mugs that say, “I bathe in male tears” and donning t-shirts that read, “misandrist.” 

While mocking the men’s rights activists who opposed them, some may argue they have created a rift in the relationship between men and women. While others would argue the rift has always existed and the men’s rights activists oppose these women due to their deeply held hatred for women, love for power, and contempt for the modern societal changes taking place around them. 

Other terms related to misandry:

• Feminism: Feminism is the belief in equality of men and women. It’s a movement to end sexism, which includes not only the feminist movement but also the #MeToo movement.
• Sexism: Sexism is the belief that men are superior to women. 
• Feminazi: A feminazi is a derogatory term coined by men to describe radical feminists with whom they mock and disagree. 
• Patriarchy: The patriarchy is a system of government or society where power is held mainly by men.
• Misogyny: Discrimination of women.
• Mansplaining: Mansplaining is a newly coined term. It involves a man explaining something to a woman in a way that is condescending or patronizing, and the man knows less about the subject than the woman actually does. 
• Woke misogynist: A woke misogynist is a man who claims to be a feminist with his words, but his actions denote that of a misogynist, which can include discriminating against female employees, mansplaining, not being inclusive to women, holding gender biases, etc.

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