Comment on What do you think the solution to selling progressive politics to young men is ?
timmy_dean_sausage@lemmy.world 15 hours agoI completely understand were you’re coming from. I grew up in an incredibly disfunctional/abusive household and left at 15. I’ve been pretty much completely self-reliant since then. I was mostly self reliant before that. My parents idea of raising children was occasionally popping in to feed us or beat us (sometimes literally) into submission. I don’t need any external input to come to my own non-shitty conclusions on things because I’ve always had to think for myself.
However, I was also extremely lucky to find some good male role models in early adulthood that completely changed a lot of my life, mostly by exposing me to new ideas, skill sets, and opportunities. I think, while you and I have been shaped by hardships in a way that makes us mentally resilient enough to feel like we don’t need that mentorship, most young men don’t have that and they’re really floundering without guidance. I also think that this ultimately stems from homophobic tensions drilled into men of the last few generations that told us that platonic close relationships and brotherly affection between men is unacceptable.
So, while I agree that right wing ideology isn’t the default for young men who lack positive guidance, it’s a completely understandable outcome when the only available guidance they have, in a world that leaves young people with so many important/big questions, is a highly curated machine designed to lure them into a downward spiral towards far right/ fascist ideology.