Are You Man Enough? Thoughts on Gender Equality, Masculinity, & Gender Roles

Hey,

Is there a part of you that you wish you could honor but have been told you can’t? Say, something that feels more culturally masculine or feminine? Or, maybe something in between, void of any labels in your mind?

So often, our curiosities to explore the beautiful spectrum of behaviors and affinities that are available to us as human beings are repressed as we conform to the stereotypes conditioned into us at an early age.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

I know this, not only through my lived experience where I’ve felt it to be true, but also because I recently had the pleasure of meeting a man who has dedicated his whole life to helping men, and boys, learn to show up in the world in the different way that I’m alluding to.

I met a man who is doing the work and making a real, lasting cultural impact.

Gary Barker, PhD, is the CEO and co-founder of Equimundo Center for Masculinities and Social Justice, a major contributor to international activism on male allyship in gender equality. His bio is packed full of impressive philanthropic efforts and achievements around masculinity, manhood, and parenting, with a key focus on engaging men and boys in advancing gender equality, gender justice, and positive, non-violent masculinities.

Honestly, it’s too much to list here, so I’ll leave you with some news to pique your interest: Melinda French Gates recently entrusted Gary and a few other select leaders to distribute a $20 million fund to charitable organizations doing urgent, impactful, and innovative work to improve women’s health and well-being in the United States and around the world.

After spending time with Gary on the show, I can see why Melinda would trust him to distribute these funds. He embodies all that you could hope for in a leader who is teaching tens of thousands of young men around the world how to show up in the world with empathy and equality, without removing what makes them men in the first place.

Whether you identify as a man, a woman, or neither, I know that Gary’s work will be of interest to you. Because, it’s not just about men. It’s about all of us as humans, how we coexist and show up as our authentic selves in the world.

Thanks for reading (and watching!),

Jonathan

A Thought

As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives.

-Henry David Thoreau

A Stretch

Do something outside of your comfort zone this weekend. Wear that outfit you’ve been thinking about. Text that person that’s been on your mind. Make that apology. Set that boundary. Start that project. Or, for those of you (like me) who are constantly doing something, try to do … nothing. That counts too.

A Bonus

I’ve been revisiting key themes from both the book and podcast over on Instagram and would love to spend time with you there. This week, you can enjoy a few snippets on each step of the Accountability Dial.

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