Michael Kimmel explains that today’s Angry White Men are looking backward, nostalgically at the world they have lost.
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Remember Howard Beale? Played by Peter Finch in the movie Network (1976), the deranged former TV news anchor Beale tries to generate a social movement by admonishing viewers with a simple sentiment: “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!” Three decades later, there are still a host of Americans who feel mad as hell, and who are refusing to take it anymore.
Like Beale, a lot of them feel blindsided by history, and their rage is turned outwards, towards scapegoats and unseen forces, but rarely, as in the film, at the cynical elites who profit from Beale’s descent into madeness.
And, like Beale, a lot of the current crop of the outraged are a lot of white men. Not all of them, of course. There are plenty of angry men of color and plenty of angry white women. Just look at those Tea Party rallies! But as a political movement, as the rank and file of America’s fulminators — whether the Tea Party or organizations on the extreme right wing, or the guys, always guys, who open fire on their classmates at school or their co-workers and colleagues at work, or the men, almost always men, who beat and murder those they claim to love, or the young men, always young men, who walk into movie theaters of places of worship with guns blazing — well it’s pretty hard to deny that they’re virtually all white men. (And let us be clear: just because virtually all these cases are middle- and lower-middle class white men, does not for a nanosecond mean that all white men are crazed killers or white supremacists. All members of the Mafia may be Italian, but not all Italians are members of the Mafia.)
We’d notice, of course, if it were poor black girls pulling the triggers in school shootings, or women who walked into their workplaces with semi-automatic guns firing, or all Asians or Jews or Latinos who were shooting up our movie theaters and political rallies. But white men? Must be some other factor.
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Yet deny it we do, often by assuming that these outbursts are motivated by anything at all — mental illness, access to guns, video games, whatever — other than gender. We’d notice, of course, if it were poor black girls pulling the triggers in school shootings, or women who walked into their workplaces with semi-automatic guns firing, or all Asians or Jews or Latinos who were shooting up our movie theaters and political rallies. But white men? Must be some other factor.
It seems so obvious, and yet so startling to see middle-class white American men, arguably the most privileged human beings on the planet (excluding, of course, hereditary aristocracies and the upper classes) fuming with such self-righteous outrage. (The comedian Louis CK gets this sense of privilege: “I’m a white man,” he says, “How many advantages can one persona have?”
So, to research my book, Angry White Men, I traveled the country and interviewed scores of these guys — from “men’s rights” activists who think white men are the victims of the new discrimination, to the “white wing” on the rightward fringes of the American political spectrum, who believe they are watching “our” country being snatched away from them.
What unites them, I came to understand, was a sentiment I called “aggrieved entitlement.” Raised to believe that this was “their” country, simply by being born white and male, they were entitled to a good job by which they could support a family as sole breadwinners, and to deference at home from adoring wives and obedient children. And not only do their kids and their wives have ideas of their own; not only is the competition for those jobs increasingly ferocious; they’ve also been slammed by predatory lenders, corporate moguls, Wall Street short-sellers betting against their own companies and manipulated by cynical elites into believing that their adversaries were not the ones downsizing, outsourcing and cutting their jobs, but those assorted others — women, immigrants, gays, black people — who were asserting their claims for a piece of the pie. The middle class white American man expected to be more Don Draper, all self-made , in control, and upwardly mobile. Instead he’s more like William Foster, another fictional character who’s fallen off the cliff into that dark abyss of despair, violence and madness.
Today’s Angry White Men look backward, nostalgically at the world they have lost. Some organize politically to restore “their” country; some descend into madness; others lash out violently at a host of scapegoats. Theirs is a fight to restore, to reclaim more than just what they feel entitled to socially or economically — it’s also to restore their sense of manhood, to reclaim that sense of dominance and power to which they also feel entitled. They don’t get mad, they want to get even — but with whom?
Alas, that multicultural, democratic train has long ago left the station; it’s impossible to imagine America rolling back the gains made by women, LGBT people, immigrants, people of color. Angry White Men may still strew some obstacles on that global path to greater equality, making the road bumpier. But its direction is clear. And the loudest screams are coming not from those whose fortunes are rising, but from those over whom the engines locomotives of history are rolling.
Here, then, is a gallery of some of the more prominent angry white men, both real and fictional. Each represents a different expression of that aggrieved entitlement; they are not a coherent and unified movement, and most of these men do not know each other nor recognize the others as fellow travelers. They are, instead, isolated Howard Beales, some with huge followings, to be sure, shouting into a strong headwind. The past may have been theirs, but the future belongs to others.
Originally appeared at The Huffington Post
Photo: Flickr/Matt P.
I think this post shows us that there is still a significant portion of the progressive conversation being dedicated to deciding who has a right to be upset and angry about anything.
Heavens, Kimmel is still relevant?
“Aggrieved entitlement…” “Raised to believe that this was ‘their’ country….simply by being being born white and male…they were entitled to a job in which they were the sole breadwinners….and to deference at home….” Insightful statements…that described my ex to a tee….despite being the head of his department, he always resented the power and position of the “triple black belts” around him….he was always muttering under his breath how much he hated some of them…that he was smarter and was not getting the recognition he deserved…he especially hated one “triple black belt” who was of another race… His resentment grew as… Read more »
CW, so glad you’re here, you’ve saved me a heck of a lot of writing.
I do not understand Dr. Kimmel’s arguments. When commentators attempt to paint other demographics with the broad brush of stereotype (e.g. black men are responsible for crime), they are rightly called out for ignoring the individuals involved. Yet Dr. Kimmel seems to be advocating that our society blame white men for things (public shootings, at a minimum) simply because they are white and male, without looking at the individuals involved (Dr. Kimmel is clear about writing off mental illness all together – he’s not concerned with personal demons so much as skin color). How can this shift in vision possibly… Read more »
If the top x% of wealthy people that own most of everything are mostly white men and angry… well, never mind about them.
But if some men are in the other segment and having a tough time and they are white, they are not privileged.
Just a quick FYI … the welthiest man in the world is Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim
Yeah well pretty much any billionaire would be considered white
So you are saying that “whiteness” is not, in fact, defined by skin color, just like the patriarchy does not, in fact, denote the rule of the fathers, and not even the rule of men? Interesting perspective.
I don’t know Theorema- is Sean Combs hanging in the Hamptons authentically black?
Nah, the wealthiest man in the world is Bolivian cocaine king-pin Rosario De La Cruz Figaro Vasquez Sanches Del Sol Que Vive En El CIelo Tenochtitlan Villa, “El Tiburon” for short, “Tibi” for shorter.
I’ll speak only for myself- I’m angry… I’ve gotten past the idea that when I was born, in the late 50s, the earth shook with the arrival of another giant… I’m still working, despite the promise of the early 70s that Americans would only work 16 hrs a week. I don’t see progress as a zero sum game and can’t see why the standard of living hasn’t raised for all.. I remember when Moms went to work and families bought color TVs and vacations with the extra money… Now Mom & Dad have to log 90 or 100 hours to… Read more »
Hi Michael Kimmel
I hope you are right when you say the future belong to others.
wow… Let me get this straight. You are actively hoping for the disenfranchisement of a group based soley on their skin color and gender. “I hope the future belongs to others!” You’re not hoping for equal participation based only on ability.
Kind of scary
Hi CW Yes I know, I should stay out the debate . My knowledge of what happens in America today is scant. But since I am Norwegian I experienced our own whit angry man that massacred 77 persons one afternoon July 22 in 2011. To read his Manifesto confirmed lots of what Michale write here. But the discussion about the model many call multicultural society needs to be discussed. I find it interesting to read view from persons in Europe that fight for Nationalism and not globalization and multiculturalism. EU is a project that many say aims to become like… Read more »
So one person can “confirm” the positions of millions? Confirmation bias in action.
Hi CW
he is not the only one that says the civil war in Europe has already started.
Are there groups in America that also say America already is in phase one of a civil war in America?
It is the zero sum game school of equality CW..
How can the rest of the population rise without the white man falling?
So many of the people he’s talking about don’t have any room to fall.
“or the young men, always young men, who walk into movie theaters of places of worship with guns blazing — well it’s pretty hard to deny that they’re virtually all white men.”
This claim is valid but specious, because it is limited to the special cases of movie theaters and places of worship. It is easy to deny that mass shooters in general are uniquely white. Lee Boyd Malvo. John Allen Muhammad. Seung-Hui Cho. Aaron Alexis. One L. Goh. Nidal Malik Hasan. Shall I go on?
What unites them, I came to understand, was a sentiment I called “aggrieved entitlement.” There is certainly a case for “aggrieved” portion of this sentiment – as Kimmel states, these men have been used and abused by the elites who employ them, lend them money, and represent them politically. They also see minorities and even more so women given preferential treatment at every turn, despite their own failing fortunes in education, work, and family. These aggrievements are very real to those who experience them. I contest whether “entitlement” is truly a part of their sentiment, however. Kimmel states “The middle… Read more »
“It seems so obvious, and yet so startling to see middle-class white American men, arguably the most privileged human beings on the planet (excluding, of course, hereditary aristocracies and the upper classes) fuming with such self-righteous outrage.” Who still have to sign up for selective service yet women don’t? Who don’t have reproductive rights? Privilege is more than what you think… Reason why there are more white shooters is probably because they’re a statistical majority, and assault rifles cost quite a bit of money. http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011/offenses-known-to-law-enforcement/expanded/expanded-homicide-data The majority of killers are black and they are a minority so they disproportionately commit… Read more »
Is your next book going to be called, Angry Black Men, considering the amount of gun violence committed by that demographic is far greater?
No one will be holding their breath for that one…
Yes, black men do perpetrate a lot of gun violence in our society, per capita. And yet, if you consider that on average their circumstances are more stressful than the average white man, that they often grow up without fatherly support, that they live in dangerous areas where it’s easy to believe that if you don’t participate you’re just waiting around to get shot, and that as black men, they are clearly undervalued and underrepresented by our society and our media in positive ways, maybe they aren’t any worse than an average white man in similar circumstances.
The irony in this comment following the one you made above it is awesome.
I think the dismissing the complaints and worries of “angry white men” as simply the bemoaning of the loss of a “privilege” is rather problematic. It’s as if the academic “ivory tower” cannot take the grievances of a “privileged class” seriously or give credence to the fact that some of these complaints may, in fact, be valid. The great tragedy is that the anger of those white men who have seen their fortunes fall in the past decades is misplaced. To give but one example, many years ago a local slaughterhouse and packing plant broke their union and brought in… Read more »
I think you’ve nailed part of it. The root cause of their disatisfaction is economic. What’s interesting- if you listen to the rhetoric of the Dems they’re being told they are part of the problem. Think about President Obama’s comments about “guns and religion”, Nancy Pelosi’s or Eric Holder’s. The leaders of the Democratic party hold rural whites in disdain. The Repubs don’t offer them anything from a economic perspective but they aren’t sneering at them. A second item I think this is part of issue is mindset based. Many rural Americans (especially in the South and the West) want… Read more »
Joe Bageant makes these points exhaustively, especially about Appalachian Americans (some of the poorest and most individualistic available) in his writing. If any progress is going to be made in this bass-ackward nation then those who proclaim their good hearts need to find a way to talk to these people while respecting their human dignity and their three to four hundred year old cultural system while also recognizing them as victims of a spiritually and physically torturous system. But that’s probably not going to happen any time soon because it’s easier to kick downward than upward and when you kick… Read more »
Without those scots irish there would have never been an American revolution so ironic that they are pretty much left out of American life now. I’ve spent quite a bit of time in the NC and VA and am related by marriage to a number of OLD Scotch Irish families. Thanks for turning me on to Joe Bageant. I need to pick up his book!
@ A. Murphy, Interesting: I read what you wrote, I think you made some very good points, especially addressing the sources of the frustration that so-called “rednecks” face. I, too, believe that much of their dissatisfaction arises from their perceived economic struggles rather than a perception of entitlement. The only problem is, this frustration doesn’t express itself in an intelligent way. They allow it to be manipulated by the right wing media you mentioned, and their voices and votes are directed against their own (and mine, and everyone else’s) best interests. The media lends justification to the prejudices and cultural… Read more »
attitudes like yours are why this cohort of Americans doesn’t trust the left. In one comment you describe their actions and beliefs as unintelligent, manipulated, prejudiced, and conceited. This is pretty much what is exhibited by President Obama, Eric Holder, Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden etc… If you’re seeking their votes you’d better learn how to talk to them. The Democrats have alienated non-urban white America as badly as the Repubs have alienated many minorities. You cannot demonize someone and expect them to vote for you. To many rural Americans- the Republicans at least don’t sneer at them and the values… Read more »
@cw, Cracker, please. (I can use the C-word ’cause I’m white). You have one semi-example of a lapse of perfect political correctness when President Obama used the words “guns and religion” to describe his political opponents’ focuses. So what? Isn’t it true that gun rights and religious expression are primary rural conservative concerns? And when did Nancy Pelosi or Eric Holder say anything anti-rural? No, these people–who are either black or female, oddly enough–walk a tightrope of political correctness while right wing pundits and even politicians eagerly await the slightest imperfection to exploit; they say nothing of the sort. But… Read more »
A little advice- refrain from name calling. It makes you sound ignorant, its rude, and it lowers the level of discourse. If you haven’t heard Eric Holder’s, Nancy Pelosi’s and Joe Biden’s (you ignored that one because it doesnt fit your narrative) quotes about firearm owners you’re not paying attention. The Democratic party has alienated these voters- they ignore flyover country and the people who live there pick up on it. One could make an argument that the Democrats have a better platform for these voters but a palpable disdain shines through. You seem to treat our political system like… Read more »
@cw OK, fine. Names aside, I’ll say this: you are clearly an intelligent and thoughtful person. You’re a step ahead of an unfortunate lot of people in that way. I’ve started several responses, but they’ve all gotten tangled up in an attempt to be straight-forward, politically correct, cover all bases, and by all means to NOT be condescending. I think I’ve failed because there is no easy way to convey to someone that you think they’re position is, in all seriousness, obviously, well, wrong. It’s like confronting a bully and trying to convince him that what he does is wrong.… Read more »
We’d notice, of course, if it were poor black girls pulling the triggers in school shootings, or women who walked into their workplaces with semi-automatic guns firing, or all Asians or Jews or Latinos who were shooting up our movie theaters and political rallies. But white men? Must be some other factor. Erm….because that’s the standard insisted upon when these other correlations are presented. Nothing to do with race, no sir. But apparently when it’s white men under discussion you think it’s acceptable? Either it’s ok, or it isn’t. Even when used ironically, which you might be doing – there’s… Read more »
I am a white male (not American, though).
To be a member of the one ethnic group on this world who can be told by Distinguished Professors that while the past did not belong to me either (because I was not alive in it), the future will hold no place for me — that is a privilege I would certainly like to give up.