Noah Berlatsky looks at the death of Trayvon Martin through the lens of a society that is inherently suspicious of black men.
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Since the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman case came to light, many Americans have pointed out there is a long tradition in this country of state-sanctioned terror against black men. Yes, things have changed in this country since the days when public lynchings were treated as festivals and white people photographed the crime with impunity, secure in the knowledge that they could collect souvenirs as they wished, since they would never be tried. But the Trayvon Martin verdict indicates they haven’t changed enough to make killing a black man a crime.
The discussion of the Zimmerman verdict has inevitably, and justly, focused on race—on the “black” part of “black men.” But it’s worth considering that Zimmerman’s anxiety, hostility, and eventually his violence were directed not only against Martin as a black person, but against him as a man—or, in this case, as a boy. There’s every reason to believe that if Martin had been white, he wouldn’t have been pursued and shot, and that, if he were shot, his killer would not have gone free. But there’s also every reason to believe that Zimmerman would have reacted much differently to a woman, of whatever race, walking nearby. Similarly, in his discussion of the verdict, Cord Jefferson talks about his own experiences as a college junior, when a security guard pulled Jefferson’s white girlfriend aside and demanded to know if she was okay. As Jefferson indicates, his race was surely a factor. But so was his gender; if he were a woman, the guard very likely would not have assumed that the white woman with him was in danger.
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The term “misandry” is most often deployed online against feminists, who are accused of systematically hating and oppressing men. Feminism has had many successes, but still, you have only to look at the U.S. Senate to know that women as a group are not yet in a position to impose a man-hating matriarchy.
Yet, in other contexts, “misandry” can be a useful concept. In particular, I think it can help explain the experience of how men, and particularly men from minority communities, are targeted for violence—most often not by women, but by other men. Adam Jones, for example, talks about the way that “battle-age” adult Kurdish men were targeted for extermination in Saddam Hussein’s brutal Anfal campaign in the late 1980s, or during the Bosnian conflict. Closer to home, in the U.S. men are more likely than women to be victims of assault, robbery, and homicide.
Misandry helps to see these disparate incidents and statistics as related, as part of a system. Men, across cultures, are seen as dangerous and violent, which is how George Zimmerman saw Trayvon Martin. Men, by their simple presence, are an excuse for violence. Because of misandry, violence against men is necessary and justified by the fact that men are men, which can help explain why men are more often the victims of homicide and assault.
Discussions of the oppression African-American men face as men is generally couched in terms of emasculation, and the historical ways in which black men have been prevented from defending and protecting their families or from exercising power. The problem for black men, in this formulation, is not that they are men, but that they are not allowed to be men.
That’s not necessarily incorrect, but it’s also useful to look at violence against black men in the light of misandry. In particular, black men, in our culture, are hyper-masculinized in just about every way, from urban myths about black penis size to urban myths about black super-predators to hip-hop’s hyperbolic macho posturing. And it’s that hyper-masculinization that provides the excuse and the pretext for violence. Part of what racism does is to activate misandry and the violence associated with it. As with Saddam in Anfal, maleness in an occupied people is seen as innately threatening, and must be exterminated. When lynch mobs castrated their victims and held up the penises, they were showing their triumph not only over blackness, but also over a maleness that they loathed and feared, and felt they had pacified.
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Black men were not the only black people lynched, and racism can’t be, and shouldn’t be, reduced to misandry. But think about the ways that prejudice against black men in particular is weaponized through hatred and fear of men and maleness, as well as through hatred and fear of black people. As Andrea Dworkin wrote, in a passionate plea against misandry, “genocide begins, however improbably, in the conviction that classes of biological distinction indisputably sanction social and political discrimination.”
Violence against black men is justified on the grounds that blackness and maleness are biologically dangerous categories that must be confronted with genocidal force. We need to re-think all those categories if we want to stop giving ourselves excuses to kill.
Originally appeared at Splice Today
Tom I realized that the stats on the machnist job demonstrate how severe the loss of income has been for Joe America.A starting wage of $12.?? an hour is nothing in todays America.As compared to the glory days men have lost 100% in wages and benefits.Hell,the minimum wage in SF is 10.55 hr. And it hasn’t prevented business owners from thriving,unlike what conservatives said would happen.Conservatives have consistently sided with business to keep wages low in most industries.That’s a fact.They help businesses avoid paying taxes while supporting huge corporate writeoffs,tax breaks and subsidies.Then they tell Joe America, don’t ask for… Read more »
Tom Yes,one can be discriminated against for variety of reasons,class being cheif among them.The difference is that class discrimination can be subdued with wealth.Racial discrimination cannot,as has been proven many times throughout history and in my own life.Apples and oranges.I cannot speak on Rev.Jackson,I don’t know him.It is certainly plausible that he could be arrogant.Nationally speaking neither preacher has significant power.People who don’t like them respond to them as if they AND the NAACP are all powerful in the black community.They do not have that kind of power and haven’t for at least a generation.People who feel they do simply… Read more »
Tom No man, I am not upset.Unfortunately,online conversations lack visual and other essential communication cues that can add to the experience.I get after it because I learn more when I am frank and to the point.I welcome the same and am not likely to be offended,if at all.So,man we are good.Anyway,here’s a lyric you may recognize from the early sixties from the Temptations,..there’s plenty of work and the bosses are payin’,not a sad word should a youngheart be sayin’ …This was the hope I cut my teeth on.But as you say costs spiraled out of control.Both my parents then at… Read more »
John Unio workers,on average,earn a fraction of what they did in the sixties and seventies at places like the UAW.Unions members asking for more isn’t dragging this economy down.Wages,outside of tech have stagnant for decades.Capitalism is not designed to be fair,but is designed to benefit owners not workers.Of course there should be balance,and the shrinking middle class proves how out of balance things are.Those who have the means will pay as little as legally possible to workers as evidenced by outsourcing.Then they demand that those same poorly paid men and women fight in wars to protect assests that don’t benefit… Read more »
John You give Rev.Jackson and Mr. Sharpton too much credit for having influence they no longer possess.The crime that happens between blacks can be effectively handled without identifying it racially which excuses others from really caring. Defining crime racially says that those people- white,black or purple are somehow morally inferior because of race.If as you wrote,”…crime is crime” than define it that way completely.You should understand when I speak of whites,I refer to people who believe in a set of cultural values.
Angel, you said “John You give Rev. Jackson and Mr. Sharpton too much credit for having influence they no longer possess.” Then ya need to talk to the main stream media and their media consultants because they sure as heck get a lot of exposure. I can comfortably say that many in the black community detest Mr. Jackson, yet the man continues to be front page. Maybe you can explain why that is? I can only speak of Mr. Jackson in that he is from Illinois and that I’ve on occasion experienced hearing views of him from friends and acquaintances.… Read more »
Tom Hey man.Thats good news about your son.Conservatives go after unions because unions fund democrats in elections.Getting reelected means getting appointed to run powerful committes that lead to cushy jobs with lobbying companies. I struggle to find a time period in our history you speak of.From the end of the CW until the post WW2 economic boom,America was a poor, crime ridden nation with a very small middle class.The wealth disparity was enormous and companies treated workers like disposable assests.In industrial cities,crime among white ethnics was common and ghettos were overcrowed,rat infested,diseased riddled pits that went up in flames regularly.Protests… Read more »
1. Hi Angel … you said “And you are completely missing my point about why it is important to deal with race. It is not to hijack the discussion, but to inform it. Whatever is done to the least of us will eventually be done to the mainstream. If blackmen are disposable, white men are too.” I didn’t say that it’s not important to deal with race, of course it is and I don’t see it as hijacking the discussion but it seems to me that we need to address men’s issues as a whole. I liken it to the… Read more »
John If we don’t racialize crime among other “races”-we don’t-then isolating blacks this way is wrong,no matter what you name it. Furthermore,most this violence is happening among a sliver of the black population,not among ALL blacks.So,this fake concern,from some folks, for these mostly young black men and boys is transparent.Fake because these same folks vote for policies and politicians that create environments to elevate the fortunes of some over others. Like big public subsidies for rich companies-like the housing industry- and rich people while destroying the infrastructure sustaining poor blacks and others.Your thing is,like for many white guys and gals,focused… Read more »
Crime is crime. According to statistics, black on white crime happens at a higher rate than white on black, but that doesn’t matter. White includes hispanic according to census and FBI data, so it’s not a racial issues because unlike overall crime statistics where blacks are targeted for drug possession unfairly, murder isn’t as likely to be blamed or convicted wrongly. DNA and ballistic technology is much better now than it was in the past. And where did I say ALL? I didn’t. I said most is gang related, which there are more hispanic gangs. And gangs recruit out of… Read more »
Well yeah, men and women can be and are both victim and perparatrators.
An interesting article and I agree with much of it such as Martin being treated with suspicion because he was male. There are several mischaracterizations in the article that need to be pointed out. The author confuses misandry with women and women with feminists. “The term “misandry” is most often deployed online against feminists, who are accused of systematically hating and oppressing men. Feminism has had many successes, but still, you have only to look at the U.S. Senate to know that women as a group are not yet in a position to impose a man-hating matriarchy.” One of the… Read more »
Tom,how’s your family?The obvious arguments put forth by your stats are interesting,but are easily challenged.What’s implied in the arguments could,to the ill informed,be dangerous.Simply put,what has ailed white guys and their families since the sixties has also ailed blackmen and their families.It all about degrees and context.Whatever bad shit eventually hurts white people has hurt the folks below them on societies food chain first.For example, few disagree that schools,from cradle to college, are failing white males.That has been happening to blackmen for much longer.White guys complain quite a bit on GMP and MRA sites about their circumstances.Which they take quite… Read more »
Throwing my 2 cents in with the stats that I showed had nothing to do with race but more so the complete and utter breakdown of family. I would say that a good 30% of the kids on my unit right now have grandparents as legal guardians of the boys. The intact family (grandparents) are pulling the weight with these kids while the actual parents are off doing whatever the hell they want. Personally, and I’m gonna be blunt here, I’m tired of the race thing. The problem is with people, narcissistic people which society is breading in great numbers,… Read more »
Tom I wish I didn’t have to confront racism,but it is forced upon me.To discuss to breakdown of the family and how it impacts men of different classes and cultures without discussing racism can’t be done.For instance,the loss of manufacturing jobs,which began in the 70’s,hurt men of color proportionally,more than whitemen.The loss of manufacturing leadership,the advancement of technology and outsourcing has left many men of color unable to be fathers and unmarriageable. The racist drug laws and three strikes has hurt also.There are always exceptions.There are always folks who can overcome extreme crcumstances like your wife.That is the point,too few… Read more »
Hello Angel, Before I forget … the family is doing well. My son recently graduated from college. Paid his own way. Took him almost 10 years but he did it. I’m VERY proud of him. ….. My dad was a union man, UAW. As was all of his friends so I can say that I understand what you’re saying. The US was the manufacturing leader of the world and that’s gone and has been gone for a very long time. BUT An article in 2012 Crains article “Companies struggle to fill jobs for skilled laborers. Shortage expected to increase over… Read more »
I think the union issue is another one that’s all lumped together, when it’s not supposed to be. My father was in teamsters for 36+ years. Private sector unions negotiate with owners to form a mutually beneficial partnership. It can get out of hand, but they do it at their own risk. Public sector unions are different because they’re negotiating with politicians that are worried about reelection, with big help from the very unions they’re making promises too. That’s where it becomes an issue for many. They are also the very unions that can threaten the most, because they’re crucial… Read more »
Tom What do these skilled laborer jobs pay?I am betting not close to what your old man and his friends made in comparative wages and benefits.What is curious to me is your staunch support of values that have contributed to the demise of men.You speak as if a simple attitude adjustment by men-not good jobs at living wages-or freedom from an oppressive,overbearing state,or freedom from corporate welfare-is all that is needed to be successful.Your Dad’s generation could afford a house,a car,some college tuition,a family vacation on one salary.Now it takes ,at least,2 fulltime jobs paying really good money to afford… Read more »
According to a 2012 article in Cleveland Crains and where I saw a similar article where a down state Illinois manufacturer showing similar pay ranges. “The employers range from small parts makers that contract with large manufacturers to midsize and large assemblers in the auto, aerospace and industrial metals sectors,” CNNMoney.com notes. The hottest openings are for machinists, tool-and-die makers, computer-aided machine operators and similar specialties, according to the story. Starting salaries for such jobs “are often as much as $45,000 to $50,000.” Overtime, which is common because of a shortage of skilled workers, can bump that up significantly. “… Read more »
“Your Dad’s generation could afford a house, a car, some college tuition, a family vacation on one salary. Now it takes ,at least,2 fulltime jobs paying really good money to afford the same things.A college graduate could afford to move out of their parent’s house. In 1968,a flat costs $300.00 a month in SF. Water, gas heat and electricity costs $30.00/$50.00 a month.” My dad’s generation struggled greatly.” …… He was one of few that owned his own house and not live in an apartment. I will never forget the day he sold our home, which had been on the… Read more »
“But it’s worth considering that Zimmerman’s anxiety, hostility, and eventually his violence were directed not only against Martin as a black person, but against him as a man” Violence in self defense is a needed evil, and came about from the fact that trayvon VIOLENTLY attacked Zimmerman although you have left out that even though it was shown in caught. It angers me that people like yourself will openly use a case and pick the parts that fit your agenda, Trayvon’s own friend gave testimony that Trayvon made racist and profiling comments about Zimmerman, but people like you will always… Read more »
But there’s also every reason to believe that Zimmerman would have reacted much differently to a woman, of whatever race, walking nearby. Yes. Very different. Gender is something that has been very selectively mentioned in the the Zimmerman/Martin affair. If you look about the only time its come up is when talking about the privileges that allowed Zimmerman to do what he did. And I also can’t help but note that in cases where a woman is mistreated/attacked some of the very same people that would invoke “if it were a man it wouldn’t have happened/it would have been taken… Read more »
Danny I have yet to understand how blackmen can be hated and terrorized for being men,suffering lynchings and ritualized burnings and castrations and yet be considered privileged.What is your take?
@Ogwriter… We can agree Bro. Disdain for Black men is based strictly on race. The POTUS cannot even get the respect her deserves. If he cannot get it, how do you expect men such as you and me to get it. Even Oprah stated she IS still subject to racial discrimination as a billionaire Black woman more so as being Black than a woman. One last point about this piece. Through out human history, it has ALWAYS been men killing men. So, I am not sure how to take this “misandry” argument. Hell, even other Blacks in Africa captured sold… Read more »
Through out human history, it has ALWAYS been men killing men. So, I am not sure how to take this “misandry” argument. The “who” behind the mistreatment is not what makes it misandry or not. Its the “what”, “why”, and maybe “how”. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say that women can’t be misogynists, so why does the “who” behind the actions/words suddenly matter when taking about men? (On side note I think putting more value in the “who” that the “what/why/how” is a big problem in the overall conversation on sexism to begin with. These days more stock… Read more »
I’d like to mention that her (Oprah) incident didn’t happen in the USA where she’s not as easily recognized.
On a further note, I and a friend went to a Mercedes dealership where he was looking to buy a convertible. We’d been working on one (1964 Lincoln convertible)of his 4 antique cars when we decided go shopping. Not that we were grungy with dirty hands and greasy jeans, we were by no means dressed up. It took us about 30 minutes before we could get someone to help us out. Even when we did find someone, it was obvious that the salesman “thought” we were wasting his time. Sad part for that salesman is that the guy lost the… Read more »
To me its a matter of perception and what favors one’s argument. To those that want to dismiss the experiences of men, we are privielged and those things you mention are just collateral damage of what’s done to women (in regards to them happening to us as men). To those that want to make men the victims, while others suffer such treatments men have a unique place where they have it worse than all others. To me its both. There are places where men are privileged and places where men are oppressed (which I believe is a point of contention… Read more »
Not sure if this is relevant but …. Examining nearly a century of U.S. census reports, Ricketts found that between 1890 and 1950, blacks had higher marriage rates than whites. Until 1970, black women were more likely to get married than white women — and that was despite the high mortality rates among black men, leaving fewer available for marriage. In three of four decennial years between 1890 and 1920, black men out-married white men. Poverty, discrimination, lack of education, unemployment or slavery. Black Americans had all those handicaps — and yet they still had strong families and low crime… Read more »
While I agree that the term fits the concept you’re describing, I think you’re wrong that it’s what led Zimmerman to shoot Martin. And I don’t think that because I’m trying to defend Zimmerman, but because this story has been slanted since the beginning with false ties to racism when the evidence shows otherwise. Race is a discussion this country needed, but there was zero evidence of racism in this case until the media placed it there. The NBC editing of the 911 tape made a lot of people think Zimmerman was racist when the unedited version clearly showed Zimmerman… Read more »
There is no such thing as black on black crime.That is racialized nonsense.
@ogwriter… What’s up Bro!? Hope all is well. How can you say such a thing? In Baltimore, the majority of the violent crime (shooting, murders, killings, etc) IS black young men killing other black young men. Go ask the mothers of these young black men if it Black on Black? What is bothersome to me in this race narrative is its one-sided perspectives. There are numerous examples in Baltimore of young Black men attacking and even killing Whites. Yet, while they are prosecuted for the crime of violence, few are prosecuted on the grounds of committing a hate crime. I… Read more »
Crimes victims and perpetrators among all demographics are usually congruent. More Asians kill other Asians, more Whites kill other whites etc
What’s up J?! How you livin’?I can say that quite easily J.As Dr.Grant points out,and, the FBI agrees,crimes and cultural proximity matters.Eighty four to eighty-nine of murders among white people are commited by:and the survey says,…white people!Where IS the moral outrage,where are the inferences of the fatally flawed morality of white people?When we qualify and attribute crime, violence and abuse to gender,race,class, and other arbitrary means we dismiss our common humanity,good and bad.Murder,rape,sloth,jealousy,lust,desire,bad faith, are common features of humanity and no person(s) are free from the influence of these emotions.I listened to Don Lemon and the various panelists chirp endlessly… Read more »
Most of Lemon’s comments are off-based because they’re class issues, not racial issues. 84 to 89% of crimes on white being done by whites makes sense. For 2011, it’s 82%. But that wasn’t what I said. Black on black crime is a reality, and it’s not racist. In 2011, black victims were done by black offenders, 91% of the time. Link here: http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011/tables/expanded-homicide-data-table-6 That’s just murder and the reason the outrage isn’t there for whites isn’t because of the number of crimes, but because blacks compromise 14% of the population. It’s happening much more frequently. 75% of all murders are… Read more »
I’d say the MRA movement is considerably less concerned about race than feminism. Feminism has historically been very closely involved with African-American issues, from abolition on to the present. That engagement hasn’t always been perfect, and certainly black women have lots of legitimate complaints about mainstream feminism. But it’s always been there, and black feminists (from Sojourner Truth on up) have played an important role in the movement. In contrast, I’ve never seen MRA’s discuss race, or, for that matter, sexuality as an issue that might be important to men. I think it’s a pretty telling sign of their bad… Read more »
Noah We could split well defined hairs comparing the relative commitments to addressing “race” from feminism and MRA’s.For me,there isn’t enough daylight between them to differentiate them.I mean,one has failed and the other is schizophrenic.Not much to choose.Interesting is,among things,is your assertion that black women-not black people-have legitimate cause to criticize feminism.That’s very odd.All things considered and measured in a fair and balanced manner,the fact that I could be legally shot and killed by some random authority figure trumps privileges.One should be circumspect when judging,defining or seeking to understand someone else’s life experience based on a theory.There isn’t a single… Read more »
Noah Berlatsky says: August 7, 2013 at 10:25 pm I’d say the MRA movement is considerably less concerned about race than feminism. In contrast, I’ve never seen MRA’s discuss race the only men they seem to care about at all are straight white guys. patriarchy is still patriarchy, and men have lots of advantages, I think you have no idea about the Men’s Rights Movement. Maybe you could explain to me what advantages I might have as a man – so far I have never seen any in my life. About race – it means nothing to us, we MRAs… Read more »
Feminism has historically been very closely involved with African-American issues, from abolition on to the present. Here is what I as a black man have noticed about feminism’s interaction with African Americans. In my conversations with them it seems that black men are cut in half so they can file the black half as oppressed and the man half as oppressor. With them being divided like that when a case like Zimmerman/Martin comes along there will be a clear line where Martin was treated the way he was because he is black and his being male didn’t play into it… Read more »
“Or a sign of limited reading. Not to sound snappy but I’ve fancied myself as pro MRA for a few years now and I’ve touched on some of the very things you mention here.”
Perhaps limited reading is a pretty telling sign of bad faith.
I agree, it’s about limited reading. Most people writing a comment in this thread are thinking strictly ‘USA-only’ and have no idea about MRAs and their activity beyond the US-territory. MRAs are now in many countries and their issues have nothing to do with black/white people. I would say MRAs are in most cases worldwide men, who feel they or other males are badly treated by feminist-friendly laws or had otherwise bad experiences with certain females in the past. MRAs – depending on their countries – might be white, Asian, black… There are also some females, who are MRAs, for… Read more »
YohanI am not saying that the MRA movement has to define itself around race,that’s foolish.However,neither can it be completely ignored. By ignoring the impact of race on issues important to men you marginalize your movement.Understanding how racism or classism or sexism impacts men IS important.This fear that talking about race will damage MRA efforts is questionable.
Noah The experiences you draw upon connect the dots of what most men,black, white and otherwise live daliy.However,most men who are not black will not make these associations.Lets face it,the MRA movement is as lilly white as feminism.I am “used” to being profiled as dangerous and violent.For most white guys this relatively new to them.Strangly,given the history you described, they are surprised to be treated as if they are ALL monsters.Which,in my view, is indicative of the fact that they believed the lie about blackmen.They thought their color would protect them and it hasn’t.The process that has profiled them is… Read more »