LONDON - A senior British politician appears to have punctured some thin-skinned male pride with claims in a speech on Thursday that the nation's men are suffering a “crisis of masculinity†as a result of the economic downturn.
Diane Abbott, the opposition Labour Party's spokeswoman on health issues in the British Parliament, says men have embraced a macho “Viagra and Jack Daniels†culture rather than talking openly about their anxieties in a rapidly changing society.
“It's all become a bit like the film ‘Fight Club' - the first rule of being a man in modern Britain is that you're not allowed to talk about it,†she said in a speech delivered to Demos, a public policy think tank.
The growth of consumerism and pornography, and the absence of traditional role models, have given rise to a culture of hypermasculinity that exaggerates what are perceived as manly qualities and encourages misogyny and homophobia, according to Ms. Abbott.
“At its worst, it's a celebration of heartlessness; a lack of respect for women's autonomy; and the normalization of homophobia,†according to remarks released ahead of the speech. “I fear it's often crude individualism dressed up as modern manhood.â€
Ms. Abbott's comments, previewed on Demos' Web site, brought some swift male reaction, despite her urging critics to listen to the whole speech before passing judgment.
Tony Parsons, a broadcaster and columnist writing in the British edition of GQ, said Ms. Abbott was “barking up the wrong trouser leg†with claims that recession was producing a generation of brutes.
He suggested the Labour parliamentarian knew nothing about British men, who “have never been more in touch with their emotions, and more honest about expressing them.â€
“Men, I would suggest, have never been better than they are today,†Mr. Parsons wrote. “More involved in bringing up their children. More genuinely supportive of their partners. More willing to discuss their fears with those closest to them.â€
Glen Poole, in the left-leaning Guardian, said Ms. Abbott's speech was part of a wider attempt by her Labour Party to regain the initiative in a gender debate in which the ruling Conservatives have stereotyped a feckless underclass of absent fathers.
Mr. Poole, head of the Helping Men consultancy, said it was undeniable that men and boys faced significant problems. They were more likely than women to commit crime, be homeless, or to commit suicide.
But he chastised the Labour spokeswoman for repeating a familiar, negative narrative about disaffected men who were hypermasculine, homophobic, misogynistic and obsessed with pornography.
“Abbott is right to say that there aren't enough men engaged in conversations about manhood, but is it any wonder when modern masculinity is described in such negative terms?†Mr. Poole said.
In online comments, some readers pointed out that unacceptable macho behavior was not a new phenomenon, nor was it confined to Britain.
“The world hates poor, young, undereducated men and they in turn hate the world,†Peter Choate commented at GQ.
What do you think? Is Ms. Abbott right to say that rapid economic and social change has fueled a hypermasculine culture?
