Abstract
A growth in cultural ideologies concerned with men and masculinities in contemporary American society has recently emerged. Men’s rights activist (MRA) groups embody a movement emphasizing the crisis of masculinity. Despite men’s privileged societal status, MRAs seek to establish resources for men to utilize in elevating their perceived subordinated position in society in relation to women and social minorities. Little research has systematically investigated MRAs on the Internet, which is rapidly becoming a primary source of information and social connectedness for people. Through a content analysis of the 12 most prominent MRA websites, we explore the various strategies used by contemporary men’s groups designed to provide support for men in their pursuit of social legitimacy and power. Two primary categories of MRAs with distinctive ideological strategies emerged from this analysis: Cyber Lads in Search of Masculinity and Virtual Victims in Search of Equality. Though both groups promoted men’s entitlement to social power, Cyber Lads utilized themes of explicit aggression towards and devaluation of women, while Virtual Victims adopted political and social movement rhetoric to address men’s issues. The implications of these websites are discussed in terms of gender equality and their potential effects on individual men and women.
Highlights
The past several decades highlight a growth in cultural ideologies concerned with the state of men and masculinities in contemporary American society
The most common type of men’s rights activist (MRA) website that emerged from this analysis includes online communities that offer a breadth of lifestyle advice aimed at empowering men and encouraging them to unapologetically embrace their masculinity
The majority of websites (n = 7) from this content analysis fell into the category of “Cyber Lads in Search of Masculinity”, based on their rhetoric of “lad culture” that emphasizes men’s independence from the constraints social institutions, such as the family, and critiques the “new man” as feminized and disingenuous [49]
Summary
The past several decades highlight a growth in cultural ideologies concerned with the state of men and masculinities in contemporary American society. Scholars are increasingly addressing the changing cultural conceptions of men and men’s individual identities related to their roles as fathers, their position in feminist discourses and the emergence of the New Man’s pursuit of masculinity [1]. One such outlet that has emerged from this rhetoric of masculinities in flux includes men’s rights activist (MRA) groups and organizations [2]. MRAs appeared as an outgrowth of the men’s liberation movement, which established itself in response to feminism under the argument that men suffer negative consequences as a result of rigid gender role expectations in society [2]. Some organizations associated with the men’s liberation movement align themselves with the goals of feminism and gender equality [4], men’s rights activist groups focus increasingly on the toxic consequences of feminism on men’s lives, leading to a distinctive anti-feminist framework [2,5,6]
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