'Big Man on Campus' discusses effects of toxic masculinity on men
Houghton Lake senior Michael Ignat facilitates a discussion at the "Big Man on Campus" event March 26 in the Bovee University Center Mackinac Room.
Male participants shared their journeys with masculinity at "Big Man on Campus," a toxic masculinity panel hosted by the Office of LGBTQ Services March 26.
Attendees discussed what society would be like if it did not adhere to toxic masculinity.
Houghton Lake senior Michael Ignat, Office of LGBTQ intern and facilitator for the event, said he would have his nails painted. Others said it would be a freeing experience for both men and women. One male even claimed that he would tell his friends he loved them more.
Throughout the night, male participants shared the expectations they grew up with while experiencing toxic masculinity.
Some men spoke of how they would alter themselves to fit a “masculine” persona. These alterations involved walking a certain way, deepening their voices and even puffing out their chests.
“When I was younger and I didn’t fit in with what my dad wanted me to do, I would have to either be completely disciplined by him or looked down on by him,” said Bullock Creek senior Nathanial Bartosek. “To get the affection from him I would've had to have been more masculine by nature.”
As for the women in the group, they shared their personal experiences witnessing toxic masculinity among male figures in their lives like brothers and boyfriends.
The group also brought up that toxic masculinity can have an impact depending on one’s ethnic background.
For Holland sophomore Alyssa Leal, she witnessed this firsthand being a part of a Latinx household.
“In that type of background toxic masculinity is such a huge thing,” Leal said. “You are not allowed to show your emotions. One of my brothers is more into art, he felt as though he needed to work harder to prove to my dad that he was masculine. I saw that because I saw the hurt that my brother would go through because he wouldn't get as much attention from my dad.”
With this open dialogue, individuals were able to voice their thoughts without interruption as others sat and listened.
For facilitators Ignat and philosophy faculty Andy Blom, this was the goal for the night.
“I think there’s different ways of having civil conversation,” Blom said. “I think with dialogue really our aim in cultivating a space like this is that people really take in the perspective of others and just sit with that.”
As for toxic masculinity as a whole, Leal believes that it is an issue many men face in life.
“I think that for people to say that toxic masculinity isn't a thing, I think that invalidates a lot of men’s feelings,” Leal said. “Because maybe one guy doesn't think that toxic masculinity is a thing, but there are so many men affected by it.”
