Manning up
For the past few years, Chatelaine has commissioned major surveys of Canadian women to gauge their feelings and thoughts on a whole range of subjects, from work and money to relationships and motherhood. This year, given the force of the #MeToo movement, we decided to focus on men. Since the Harvey Weinstein story broke in the New York Times last October, we’ve seen women speak out in unprecedented numbers about harassment and abuse they’ve experienced in their personal and professional lives. For the first time, not only are women widely believed, but some of the most powerful men in entertainment, politics and business have actually faced real consequences. (In late March, Miramax, Weinstein’s production company, which ruled Hollywood for over a decade, officially filed for bankruptcy.) For many women, this “global reckoning,” as it’s been called, has been emotional and complicated—or, to use the words of Chatelaine editor-at-large Rachel Giese, “cathartic and disruptive” (see her essay on redefining masculinity on page 62). It has also opened up an opportunity for us to change the conversation around gender dynamics and establish new rules and norms that benefit everyone.
Recently, Chatelaine partnered with Abacus Data to survey 1,000 men across Canada about boyhood, masculinity, sex, love, fatherhood, loneliness, feminism and much more. We also invited dozens of brave men—including a healthy-masculinity expert, the head of the Toronto Raptors and our #feminist prime minister—to elaborate on a few points in an honest and poignant video series that you can watch on chatelaine.com. A lot of the men we heard from said they wouldn’t know how to be part of the #MeToo conversation, even if they wanted to. They worry about saying or doing the wrong thing. They feel it’s safer and easier to retreat. Others feel that this just isn’t their time to speak or their issue to weigh in on. Still others told us they feel frustrated and persecuted by #MeToo—they think the movement is anti-men. A full 25 percent of the men we surveyed said that when they hear women talk about the pervasiveness of sexual harassment, they simply feel nothing at all.
With #TheManSurvey (page 61), we saw an opportunity to pose questions that men are rarely asked, about things they don’t feel they can say in public, and to explore how gender stereotypes shape the experiences of men and women. Our goal is to spark tough but important conversations, both publicly and in readers’ private lives, and as always, we’d love to hear what you think.