Sometimes, I’m confused about . At the bare minimum, we can all agree we expect men to not be disrespectful, aggressive, oppressive, and violent towards women. When we move beyond that expectation, it seems we start getting into murky waters.
The current consensus online, based on the viral memes and blog comment sections, is that we want men to stop being “sassy.” For those unfamiliar with the lexicon, I’ll give you a quick debrief of what sassy men in 2024 are. When a man is sassy, he’s exhibiting feminine traits, which many women believe are forbidden.
To drive the definition home, some examples of sassiness include men doing dances that incorporate waist movement, wearing Van Cleef & Arpels bracelets, or rocking crossbody bags. Another common grievance women point to is men being “too emotional.” Now to my initial point, I’m confused about what we want from men because we want them to stop being toxic but won’t give them the room to show up as their full, authentic selves.
And I think we don’t realize that toxicity is often a byproduct of not being able to be your true self. While I understand online banter and am well-versed in it, calling men sassy is problematic. I don’t think anyone should be shamed for expressing themselves, especially when that expression is done ethically.
And yes, that includes men. My highest value is freedom, and everyone, including men, should be given the space to express themselves without being emasculated for it. Paint.