For Millennials. By Millennials.
When people talk about sexual assault and sexual abuse, there’s one demographic that often gets ignored. And they are men. Moreover, due to existing toxic gender norms, they can be even more reluctant than women to report it. Therefore, Rose McGowan took it upon herself to raise her voice for male victims of sexual abuse.
Rose McGowan raises her voice for male victims
McGowan took to social media to shed some light on male victims and their plight and struggle that they go through. She started off by explaining how toxic masculinity is forced on them, and what sexual abuse does to their sexuality:
This sign should read #MenToo because they get hurt as well. Stolen young and put in a straight jacket – the lie of what masculinity is. If they are molested or raped, imagine the tricks it would do on their minds when they are wrestling with their own sexuality.
Rose McGowan then explains how many men hide their scars of sexual abuse. All because they’re not conditioned to talk about it:
I think a lot about men and what a toxic system does to them. So many men are walking around with the scars of sexual abuse and no emotional tools to process what has happened. No way to talk about it because they are told that’s not what boys and men do.
Finally, Rose McGowan said some encouraging words for male victims of sexual abuse. She reached out and told them that they can heal and become free:
Today my post is about recognizing and honoring their struggle. If you are a man and you’ve been hurt, understand that it has nothing to do with your sexual orientation. Understand that you too can heal and become freer, 2.0 version of yourself. #mentoo #metoo #rosearmy #Cultural Reset
https://twitter.com/rosemcgowan/status/1278451065332150274?s=20
Rose McGowan’s encouraging words will help some man come out with his experiences. But, these issues are quite deeper. Other than McGowan, Johnny Depp’s case of domestic abuse is a great case study to understand why men don’t come out with their stories of sexual abuse.
Psychologists reveal why men don’t reveal sexual abuse
Rose McGowan’s is not enough to deal with the damage toxic masculinity has done to men who suffered abuse. Dr. Alyson Huntley from the University of Bristol said:
The issue of masculinity is a societal one – men are not expected to be the weak ones. It is a hard stereotype to work against.
And Johnny Depp’s case is an interesting case study that can explain this phenomenon more easily. We hope that this tweet by Rose McGowan starts a trend where men also come forward with stories of their abuse and join hands with the many brave women who made the #MeToo Movement this special.
