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A few days ago, I watched the video created by Gillette, called “The Best Men Can Be” whose razor-sharp commentary on toxic masculinity has raised a few hackles among men. The original tag line, “The Best a Man Can Get,” was created by advertising agent Michael Shevack. He has been a friend since the late 1990s if memory serves and a ‘mensch’ (Yiddish for ‘good man’) himself. I have since viewed the ad a half a dozen times as the takeaway messages were clear and gave me reasons to cheer at the bold statements.
The narrative was that in the face of #metoo, men are being encouraged to show up, step forward, stand up and speak out against aggressions micro and macro in form. From subtle comments that are given a wink and a nod to the outright physical violations perpetrated by men are called out in this 2-minute advertorial. Bullying boys chasing a peer, hurling invectives at him, a man groping a woman, men catcalling, two boys fighting are the images flashed across the screen.
The ‘boys will be boys,’ mentality has reinforced bullying against those perceived as weaker/feminine/vulnerable and has now come under closer scrutiny than likely any other time in history. That paradigm has permitted the ‘locker room talk’ that sets the stage for abuse and assault of both women/girls, men/boys.
The commercial then transforms into scenes in which someone breaks up the fight, a man stops a buddy from accosting a woman, a dad whose young son is standing with him as he chases off the bullies and comforts the boy they have been harassing, and includes a viral video of a dad and his young daughter in which he repeats affirmations with her to encourage her seeing her value.
Gillette said in a news release, the company has a “responsibility to make sure we are promoting positive, attainable, inclusive and healthy versions on what it means to be a man.” Gillette included a pledge to donate $1 million annually for the next three years to a nonprofit devoted to helping men “achieve their personal ‘best.'” The Boys and Girls Club of America will be the first recipient, according to Adweek.
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The feedback was astonishingly mixed with some giving two thumbs up to the messages, while others felt it was preachy and painting all men with the same brush. Some called it virtue signaling. Others say that it takes away men’s right to be men and is viewed as an attack against masculinity. Several comments indicated that products shouldn’t be political and that they would be taking their business elsewhere.
When I posted the video on my Facebook page, these comments were added:
I don’t need Gillette preaching to me on men’s behavior. Mothers and wives and sisters should correct their men. Sadly many of us don’t do that.
To that response, came two others.
I don’t know where you live, but in the world in which I live and breathe and raising daughters I will take all the help we can get because we certainly need it. Just look at the backlash of this campaign. 128,000 men offended about a message of expecting better of men and holding each other accountable.
and,
Men should be correcting men.
Men ARE abusive. 1 in 3 women will suffer from domestic violence in their lives. 10 million cases of domestic violence were reported last year. Men are in enormous denial, just as the country insists there is no racism anymore. Yet here they are, still feeling the bloatedness of male (mostly white) entitlement. The truth hurts.
I don’t buy it. I think it is PR. I don’t believe that the larger Gillette community has even been approached to ask what they think. I don’t believe they have surveyed their employees. I can’t let this ad cloud my memory that Gillette has made bad razors, and put foam gel in cans that don’t work. The so-called toxic masculinity is something most people’s grandfathers and grandmothers have worked against and talked about for years. There surely are wounded men. That includes most of us men. This is not new. A huge number of men do stand up, do stand up for these noble ideas. There are a very large number of wounded and toxic women among us who also struggle to learn what it is to be accountable and want to get the respect they deserve. Welcome to both sides of this issue.
My reaction was to cry…thinking about how beautiful this message is.
I think this is one of the most inspiring ads I’ve ever seen. I believe it demonstrates what it is to be a male role model. It’s possible that this ad is a mirror for some men. Love, compassion and caring for all is a positive trait, regardless of sex.
My favorite line?
The boys watching today will be the men of tomorrow.
Shevack offers his take on the campaign,
Believe it or not when I was working on the original line, ‘The best a man can be’, was the first idea people came up with.
However, it was too generic and sounded like the then Army line– “Be all that you can be”— so we rejected it, but considered it the “net take away” from any line invented.
The word “get” made all the difference in the world. The best a man can GET made the line. First, it rhymed with Gillette, so it could be owned. Second, it meant “the best you can BE, AS WELL AS, the best you can PURCHASE”, simultaneously. Terrific double entendre. Made my career.
The new line actually is how you would translate the original line in most of the countries around the
world, where the word “get” doesn’t have the double meaning. “The Best of Man/Men”.The original line was always about men being their best. It focused at that particular time on the outward appearances, of fathers and sons, of men in healthy competition. It was an ideal we were projecting, but focused more on the appearances, of course, because this is a razor. This new campaign is more of introjecting than. It is seeking to actively internalize the positive qualities that a contemporary man needs to be. It is doing so more deeply, more intimately, changing the psyche of the man, and not just the superficial appearance. It is also calling into question some of the stereotypes that men, in their masculinity, don’t question.
That Gillette is taking this on is part of their heritage of “owning the world of men”, which they did since the 1950s. It is extremely brave to associate themselves with the controversy around men and has a true ring of authenticity. Whether or not it will hurt or help sales, remains to be seen. But my guess is the credibility of Gillette will now stand out, even more, having an emotional-reason-for being, especially against me-too, merely imitative brands like Harry.
Besides, I bet the majority of razors are purchased by women for their men, and this is a major strategy to drive up that purchase!!! Don’t think for a second there isn’t purely, (largely male?)capitalistic drive behind this, too!!! And there might be a halo on other P&G brands too!!!
I am blessed to have many good men in my life, who are positive role models for the next generation of boys and girls, who want healthy and safe relationships for everyone. These are men who don’t feel threatened or defensive when the behavior of others is questioned since they know they are not the ones being referred to.
These are the men who don’t see ‘feminist’ as a dirty word that robs them of their manhood.
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