Feminist Professor Says Cats Are the Solution to ‘Toxic Masculinity’



Cats are the solution to toxic masculinity, claims one Australian feminist professor.

Dr. Heather Fraser, who teachers at Flinders University, has been researching “feline masculinities,” which basically means she’s spent a ton of time looking at men and their cats on Instagram.

(You heard that right: That’s a job someone has. Now look at your life, look at your choices.)

In the past, “aspects of orthodox masculinity” stopped men from being too expressive about any affinities for cats, Fraser told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. That same orthodox masculinity, she said, has been correlated with misogyny and violence.

But now, a growing number of men are posting photos of themselves snuggling with beloved kittens, and “that’s a beautiful thing,” Fraser said.

“I like to see men defying the narrow straight-jackets of the ‘he-men’ of the past. In amongst all this, it’s also fun, it’s good. And it allows boys that are growing up to have better relationships with cats and, by extension, other kinds of creatures,” she told the Australian national news service.

The poster boy for this cat-loving masculinity movement is Chris Hemsworth. In the past year, he’s apologized for cultural appropriation, hung out with the protestors at Standing Rock, and — most important — posed for Vanity Fair cuddling at least two cats as he luxuriated in bed.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation also quotes a recent study, which claims men who own cats are more likely to “identify as ‘a bit of an intellectual,” more likely to vote Green Party, and less likely to play sports. So hunky!

Jillian Kay Melchior writes for Heat Street and is a fellow for the Steamboat Institute and the Independent Women’s Forum.

More

  1. College Spends $100k Telling Athletes Their Toxic Masculinity Causes Rape
  2. Duke Offers Men a ‘Safe Space’ to Contemplate Their ‘Toxic Masculinity’
  3. Thor Actor Chris Hemsworth Apologizes for Cultural Appropriation

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