These posts and comments on social media regarding men’s mental health seem to miss a crucial point: the male sex isn’t the only one that is capable of contributing to the stigma surrounding male emotion.
Coming from a medium that lauds petty man-hating and scapegoating as female empowerment, what did I expect? They start off by feigning sympathy and concern for men at risk only to then lump them together with symptoms of “the patriarchy” and place all accountability for men’s issues solely on the men in question. So what was once ostensibly intended for the purpose of reaching out to desolate, emotionally repressed men, as well as encouraging emotional support and empathy towards men, predictably segues into a patronizing recital of victim-blaming and a contest of victim status.
In the end, what can be gleaned isn’t just the presence of male sensibility but also the prevalence of human ignorance and hypocrisy. No one needs to care about hypocrisy so long as there’s enough pride in self-deceit to go around.