Talk:Men's rights movement

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Pre1970s history sourcing

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Since men's rights redirects to this article, and since what follows (activism, movement, advocate, enthusiast, etc) varies, that is the core phrase to be considered here.

Tried this earlier at #History section but the conversation got convoluted. I'm giving this another go, regarding the sourcing of historical statements about "men's rights" and attempting to arrange them chronologically. Starting with the earliest JSTOR result for the phrase:

Outlines of Universal History, from the Creation of the World to the Present Time by George Weber, M. Behr from The North American Review, Vol. 76, No. 158 (JANUARY, 1853), pp. 124-166 (page 134)

We may accept, then, in its full extent, the remark of Sir James Mackintosh: -

"The first principles of jurisprudence are simple maxims of reason, of which the observance is immediately discovered by experience to be essential to the security of men's rights, and which pervade the laws of all countries."

This early example highlights a supreme difficulty in researching sources for the origins of the topic of this article. That the term was used in a general sense (by which we might now think citizen rights or human rights) rather than a specific man vs woman sense. That said, the predominance of 'men' could be due to men being the ones held legally accountable for acts in which women were not. Due to that, it could be significant to elaborate on this in the history section, though it would benefit from tertiary references to interpret that reality. Weren't there policies where men were held accountable for their wives actions, or something of that sort, in the pre-1900s?

I did find one notable reference:

• Woman in German Literature before and after the Reformation by Myrtle Mann Gillet from The Journal of English and Germanic Philology, Vol. 17, No. 3 (Jul., 1918), pp. 346-375 (page 351)

"Although he looked at marriage on the whole through the eyes of a man he in no case shows himself in the least unsympathetic towards women. Although a Catholic and Dean of Bamberg Cathedral, upholding no doubt as a churchman the doctrine of celibacy as holy, he nevertheless wrote his Ehebuchlein with a layman's comprehension - and more - of woman's personal problems. To be sure he demands that women should obey their husbands and serve them in every way, but after a loud discussion of men's rights, he turns to them with stern directness:

I am looking for suggestions on what terms to look for, to find more specific references. Particularly regarding the 1920s group earlier dismissed. Ranze (talk) 01:55, 6 June 2013 (UTC)

• Ranze, let me ask you to use our citation templates. I just finished the last of those four you added. Three of them could have been more easily handled if you had used Template:Cite book where all you had to do was stick in the URL and click the fill-in button. Besides, you added formatting to the quotes without indicating what you added. I think you added wikilinks for two historians, but wikilinking in quotes is strongly discouraged. So I edited them a little bit, but I am not entirely sure whether they are an accurate representation of what was in the sources. Thank you, Drmies (talk) 14:36, 6 June 2013 (UTC)

Ranze, you may consider framing up a "Men's rights" page in your userspace, I'll help you if you like. I think there are enough sources, both the older ones you've found, and more recent ones, that use a rights-based discourse but that aren't talking only about this one branch.--Obi-Wan Kenobi (talk) 18:25, 6 June 2013 (UTC)

• Comment: This was discussed in April and there was no consensus to include the information. Ranze knows this because he was the editor that tried to include something similar before [1] and participated in the discussion. Ranze, do you have reason to assume that the consensus has changed or why have you ignored the previous discussion? --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 18:55, 6 June 2013 (UTC)

Sonic I get the impression you either did not read my message or are intentionally trying to misrepresent my actions. Look at what you say:

Ranze knows this because he was the editor that tried to include something similar before

You write that as if to inform people of it, as if I was avoiding that information. But look at what I said in my post:

Tried this earlier at #History section but the conversation got convoluted. I'm giving this another go

Clearly I was open about being the editor who addressed the issue before. Please do not imply otherwise. Now in regard to consensus:

there was no consensus to include the information. .. do you have reason to assume that the consensus has changed? .. why have you ignored the previous discussion?

The only accurate statement here is the first one. A lack of attaining consensus to include information is not the same thing as having attained consensus to NOT include the information. As anyone can see from reading the discussion, I could not have ignored it, because I participated in it heavily, including replying to people who replied to the thread. Consensus was simply not reached because people stopped replying to it, and now the thread has even been archived so to discuss it further there must be this new section. People did not address my counterpoints, so I am reconstructing the argument here. I have found copies of one of the 1920 newspaper articles using Ancestry.com (a preview is available which confirms its legitimacy) so know for certain it exists. We should prepare to include it as soon as we can get a full copy. Ranze (talk) 21:53, 6 June 2013 (UTC)

Yes, that is exactly what I wrote. There was no consensus to include the information. What changed in the meantime that you believe that there is consensus to include it? And if you are so confident that "Consensus was simply not reached because people stopped replying to it", then why didn't you bring this up here and wait for more editors to respond? I should add that I'm not opposed to adding information that some men in Austria and Germany felt so oppressed by women in the interwar period that they formed "men's rights" groups here and there. I believe that I said something similar [2]. What bothers me is that you implied that there were actual organized "movements" (sources don't support that). You didn't mention that it is all about one organization, "League of Men's Rights" in Austria, and, most importantly, you didn't consider the explanation in the previous discussion that "Liga fur Menschenrechte" ("Leage of Men's Rights") translates to "League for the rights of people". This is why the "Liga fur Menschenrechte" described in the last source (Plotkin) doesn't bear any resemblance or share any of the same interests of the men's rights organizations as we've known them since the late 1960s. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 23:15, 6 June 2013 (UTC)

I consider it an improvement if a prehistory were given, an account of some forerunners, lest we completely define the term "men's rights movement" in opposition to feminism. But that can only be done, the way I see it, on two conditions: a. that a context is provided, not just with a quote in the footnote; and b. that a modern reference indicate that these are indeed forerunners of a kind. I say this having edited the templates but being blissfully unaware of the content of the cited works or the previous discussion. After all, time's a wasting. Drmies (talk) 01:32, 7 June 2013 (UTC)

The very early Putnam source discusses "men's rights" as a backlash reaction to the upwelling of women's rights, so your notion that the forerunners might not be in opposition to feminism is incorrect. Binksternet (talk) 04:56, 7 June 2013 (UTC)

You misunderstand me: I don't have that notion, but that's how our article currently defines it. I'll be more complete: in opposition to 1960/1970s feminism. Drmies (talk) 13:45, 7 June 2013 (UTC)

The problem as I see it is that Ranze's sources mention one Austrian organization, not "movements" as he wrote. Another problem is that at least one of the four sources, an excerpt from a diary from 1932 [3], is about the "Liga fur Menschenrechte" which means "League for the rights of people", not "League for the rights of men". There is no evidence that this was a precursor to the men's rights movement. Moreover, one could argue that we're dealing with primary sources because they were so close to the event (a diary written by someone who was invited to join the organization, an NYT article from 1926, a book from 1932).

There's this one source [4] that discusses the responses to feminism at the turn of the century and it mentions the men's rights movement under the header "Contemporary parallels". There's also a masters thesis that deals with the "Mannerrechtsbewegung" ("men's rights movement") in Austria in the 1920s: [5]. The two sources characterize the 1920's version of men's rights groups as part of a backlash against the women's rights movement. I'm not aware of any sources (apart from the two I mentioned) which deal with forerunners or turn-of-the-century parallels to the men's rights movement. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 22:41, 7 June 2013 (UTC)

Now we're talking. Thanks. Now... care to add that to the article, properly verified and contextualized? Drmies (talk) 02:47, 8 June 2013 (UTC)

Before that I want to remove the Plotkin ref (diary entry about the "Liga fur Menschenrechte", which does not translate to "men's rights" but "rights of people"). I also want to reword the entire sentence to clarify that the sources deal with one organization, the „Bund fur Mannerrechte” (League for Men's Rights), not "movements". Do I have the support to make the edits? --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 13:11, 8 June 2013 (UTC)

Perhaps we should also replace the Healy ref with the actual book by Hauch and the relevant quote in German about the "Bund für Männerrechte" (Hauch, Gabriella (1995). Vom Frauenstandpunkt aus: Frauen im Parlament, 1919-1933. Vienna: Verlag für Gesellschaftskritik. p. 13. ISBN 978-3-85115-216-6.) --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 13:41, 8 June 2013 (UTC)

I have to look in detail at sources, but I'll start of by saying that there was clearly a consensus in the prior discussion that the 1932 diary extract [6] was not suitable as a source because it a left-wing human rights group (see [7][8][9][10]) and absolutely nothing to do with the men's rights being described in this context. I am going to remove that reference.Slp1 (talk) 17:52, 10 June 2013 (UTC)

I haven't researched this, but based on the links you provided, that makes sense - it seems this particular group was a human rights group.--Obi-Wan Kenobi (talk) 18:51, 10 June 2013 (UTC)

It took me a long time to track down a paper published in the "Wiener Geschichtsblätter" about men's rights groups in Vienna during the interwar period. I'll use that paper and a 2009 Diplomarbeit to add a paragraph about the League for Men's Rights, Justitia League for Family Law Reform, and the Aequitas World's League for the Rights of Men. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 18:33, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

Thanks for doing this including wading through all the German in these secondary sources!! FYI found this which suggests that aequitas/equitas was defunct long before 1939.Slp1 (talk) 02:02, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

Justitia disbanded in 1937 due to "lack of interest among members" (Malleier p. 228). Aequitas was dissolved by the government in 1938 and, according to Malleier (p. 229), an official record of the dissolution exists [11]. Malleier even gives the address where the last Aequitas meetings took place (Allerheiligenplatz 17, Brigittenau). Financial difficulties, lack of success, and the death of Sigurd Hoeberth von Schwarzthal, the founder of the League for Men's Rights and Aequitas, in 1938 were some of the other reasons why Aequitas disappeared. I think that Malleier's paper in the Wiener Geschichtsblaetter is a highly reliable source concerning the history of Vienna. Maybe the Montreal Gazette assumed that it was over for Aequitas in 1930 because the last edition of the Aequitas journal "Self-Defense" was published in September 1930? --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 10:56, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

Wow! What a great example of why using secondary sources rather than a primary sources such as historical newspapers is so important. It just goes to show. For the record, I think the Gazette (and the NYT- the same report was published there) assumed that Equitas had folded because their Vienna Office closed and the world conference the year before had had to be postponed due to lack of interest. Slp1 (talk) 12:54, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

Agreed. It is usually preferable to have a secondary source that interprets information from primary source material and puts it into perspective. The Malleier paper looks like a very well researched secondary source with an impressive amount of detail about the organizations. And the Wiener Geschichtsblaetter appears to be an authoritative source of information on Viennese history. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 18:01, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

If there was no consensus to include this material, what about "misogynist" in the intro? Is there a consensus for that? Or do the "no consensus" rules somehow apply differently?William Jockusch (talk) 16:59, 26 June 2013 (UTC)

"Backlash"

Why are we using the word "backlash," which generally has a pejorative connotation, in the fourth sentence of of the lead section: "The MRM is considered to be a backlash to the feminist movement"? It seems to me that phrasing such as "response to," "reaction to," or even "rebellion against," would be more neutral and yet would still be consistent with what reliable sources say about the movement. Moreover, the sentence as it now stands seems rather awkward. If we are so sure of this "fact" (opinion, really), why not simply say that "the MRM is a backlash to the feminist movement"? Probably because this would sound biased and dismissive. Badmintonhist (talk) 21:34, 26 July 2013 (UTC)

You might want to revisit the actual article, and the actual references:

• Maddison, Sarah (1999). "Private Men, Public Anger: The Men's Rights Movement in Australia" (PDF). Journal of Interdisciplinary Gender Studies. 4 (2): 39–52.
• Doyle, Ciara (2004). "The Fathers' Rights Movement: Extending Patriarchal Control Beyond the Marital Family". In Herrman, Peter (ed.). Citizenship Revisited: Threats or Opportunities of Shifting Boundaries. New York: Nova Publishers. pp. 61–62. ISBN 978-1-59033-900-8. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |chapterurl= (help)
• Flood, Michael (2005). "Men's Collective Struggles for Gender Justice: The Case of Antiviolence Activism". In Kimmel, Michael S.; Hearn, Jeff; Connell, Raewyn (eds.). Handbook of Studies on Men and Masculinities. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications. p. 459. ISBN 978-0-7619-2369-5. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
• Finocchiaro, Peter (March 29, 2011). "Is the men's rights movement growing?". Salon. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
• Messner, Michael (2000). Politics of Masculinities: Men in Movements. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 41. ISBN 978-0-8039-5577-6.
• Messner, Michael (1998). The Limits of the 'Male Sex Role': An Analysis of the Men's Liberation and Men's Rights Movement's Discourse. pp. 269–270. The anti-feminist backlash tendencies in the discourse of men's rights advocates are clearly evident, but these activists are not arguing for a return to patriarchal arrangements and traditional masculinity... For these men, what is now needed is a movement that will free men, who will then counter these destructive effects of feminism.
• Solinger, Rickie (2013). Reproductive Politics: What Everyone Needs to Know. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 130. ISBN 978-0-19-981141-0. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |chapterurl= (help)
• Menzies, Robert (2007). "Virtual Backlash: Representation of Men's "Rights" and Feminist "Wrongs" in Cyberspace". In Boyd, Susan B (ed.). Reaction and Resistance: Feminism, Law, and Social Change. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. pp. 65–97. ISBN 978-0-7748-1411-9. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
• Dunphy, Richard (2000). Sexual Politics: An Introduction. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-7486-1247-5. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |chapterurl= (help)
• Mills, Martin (2003). "Shaping the boys' agenda: the backlash blockbusters". International Journal of Inclusive Education. 7 (1): 57–73. doi:10.1080/13603110210143644.
• Williams, Rhys H. (1995). "Constructing the Public Good: Social Movements and Cultural Resources". Social Problems. 42 (1). University of California Press: 134–135. doi:10.2307/3097008. Retrieved March 4, 2013. Another example of contractual model rhetoric is in the language of the Men's Rights movement. As a countermovement to the feminist movement, it has concentrated on areas generally thought of as family law—especially divorce and child custody laws. The movement charges that maternal preference in child custody decisions is an example of gender prejudice, with men the ones who are systematically disadvantaged... Men's Rights groups... have adopted much of the rhetoric of the early liberal feminist movement... Similarly, along with the appeal to "equal rights for fathers"... the Men's Rights movement also uses a rhetoric of children's "needs"... The needs rhetoric helps offset charges that their rights language is motivated by self-interest alone.
• Molly Dragiewicz (12 April 2011). Equality with a Vengeance: Men's Rights Groups, Battered Women, and Antifeminist Backlash. University Press of New England. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-55553-739-5. Retrieved October 22, 2011. While antifeminist father's rights groups are often identified with fringe or radical backlash perspectives and activities...
• Flood, Michael (7 July 2004). "Backlash: Angry men's movements". In Stacey Elin Rossi (ed.). The Battle and Backlash Rage on (PDF). Xlibris Corporation. pp. 261–342. ISBN 978-1-4134-5934-0. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
• Mills, Martin; Francis, Becky; Skelton, Christine (8 June 2009). "Gender policies in Australia and the United Kingdom". In Wayne Martino, Michael Kehler, and Marcus B. Weaver-Hightower (ed.). The problem with boys' education: beyond the backlash. Taylor & Francis. pp. 38–55. ISBN 978-1-56023-683-2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link)
• Menzies, Robert (2007). "Virtual Backlash: Representation of Men's "Rights" and Feminist "Wrongs" in Cyberspace". In Boyd, Susan B (ed.). Reaction and Resistance: Feminism, Law, and Social Change. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. pp. 65–97. ISBN 978-0-7748-1411-9. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
• The 1856 Putnam magazine source discusses "men's rights" as a backlash reaction to the upwelling of women's rights.
• Clatterbaugh's 1997 Contemporary perspectives on masculinity says on page 88 "The men's rights perspective, for all its talk about equality and destroying traditional roles, often seems to have taken an antifeminist and even misogynist-backlash stance." Page 80: "Publications like The Backlash! and Liberator clearly see their role as the repudiation of feminism." Page 72: "One wing of this movement [MRM] is an admittedly backlash movement. This movement stridently attacks feminism and portrays men as the true victims in today's society."
• Louise Chappell writes "The so-called backlash against the women's movement has also been identified in many countries, both East and West. It is associated with the men's rights movement that seeks to roll back changes in gender relations..." The Politics of Women's Interests: New Comparative Perspectives, page 121.
• Bob Pease writes, "The focus on men as 'victims' in public discourses about masculinity and the organized backlash of men's rights organizations pose continual threats to the gains that have been made in the last twenty years." A Man's World?: Changing Men's Practices in a Globalized World, page 202.
• Shira Tarrant writes, "Fathers' rights groups overlap with men's rights groups and both represent an organized backlash to feminism." Men Speak Out: Views on Gender, Sex, and Power, page 213.
• Page 152 of the Encyclopedia of Human Ecology: I-Z, says that "At the far end of the continuum is the men's rights (MR) branch of the CMM [Contemporary Men's Movement]. In some respects, this branch might be considered a backlash against feminism. Though the extent to which it is a backlash may have been overstated, it is true that those in the men's rights movement do believe that some of the ways in which men are socialized create inequalities that put men at a disadvantage."
• Christopher Mason writes, "During the 1990s the men's rights movement split into various factions. One group became explicitly a backlash movement that attacked feminism and adamantly stated that men are the victims in today's society. This wing of the movement publishes The Backlash! and the Liberator. The 'gender reconciliation' wing of the men's rights movement and its organization known as the Movement for the Establishment of Real Gender Equality (MERGE) publishes Balance, whose mission is to 'promote the vision of full equality and understanding between the sexes.'" Mason cites Clatterbaugh.
• Robert Menzies writes: "Cyberspace has proven itself to be an eminently fertile forum for the 'backlash' movement in conveying its message and realizing its goals. Men's rights groups have been highly successful in mobilizing the World Wide Web..."
• Barrie Levy writes that "feminist researchers and advocates are worried about a current backlash by 'men's rights' and 'fathers' rights' groups who are challenging women's right to custody of children in family courts..." Women and Violence: Seal Studies, page 121.
• Chris Beasley writes: "The first of these [Men's Rights] was for the most part anti-feminist and represented a political backlash against efforts to overcome discrimination against women. Men's rights groupings are concerned with either men as victims or a reassertion of traditional masculinity." Gender and Sexuality: Critical Theories, Critical Thinkers, page 180.
• Greg Marston writes, "Government concern with boys' issues can easily translate into support for men's rights backlashes against women... The issue facing government is how to talk about men and boys without fuelling backlash and men's rights responses..." Analysing Social Policy: A Governmental Approach, page 137.
• Peter Herrmann writes, "Men's rights movements on the other hand have existed for several decades, emerging early as a backlash against feminism..." Citizenship Revisited: Threats Or Opportunities of Shifting Boundaries, page 61.
• Victor Seidler writes, "It was also taken up as part of a backlash to feminism by many men who had identified with men's rights movements, especially in the United States. They were angry at the power they had lost to feminism..." Man Enough: Embodying Masculinities, page 6.
• Fidelma Ashe writes, "Men's different responses to feminism are one kind of expression of struggle around the legitimacy of gender relationships. Some men engaged in a backlash form of politics through fathers' rights groups." The New Politics of Masculinity: Men, Power and Resistance, page 148.
• Michael Messner writes that "by the late 1970s and early 1980s, men's rights discourse had all but eliminated the gender symmetry of men's liberation from their discourse, in favor of a more overt and angry antifeminist backlash. Feminism was viewed as a plot..." page 41 of Politics of Masculinities: Men in Movements. This Messner bit is quoted by Amanda Goldrick-Jones in Men Who Believe in Feminism, page 53.
• Jane Kenway writes, "I am disturbed but not surprised at the recent backlash against feminism in Australian education and health systems (this is most evident in the rise of the boys' and the men's rights movements)..." Her chapter is called "Having a Postmodernist Turn or Postmodern Angst", found within After Postmodernism: Education, Politics And Identity, ISBN 9780203975039

All of these writers see fit to examine men's rights in the context of a backlash to feminism. A few of them are ambivalent about the backlash but most state the matter casually, firm in the truth of the origin of the MRM as a backlash. If you think the MRM did not form as a backlash, I wonder what is your version of the origin, and I would like to see the sources which support a contrary origin story. Binksternet (talk) 00:30, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

An impressive list but you're either missing my point or else intentionally talking around it. I said that phrasing such as "a reaction to" "a response to" or even "a rebellion against" would be more neutral for US to use but would still (read it as "also") be consistent with reliable sources, in fact probably consistent with most of the sources you've just listed. The fact that a lot of sources have used the description "backlash" doesn't mean that those same sources (as well as many others) haven't also described it as a "reaction to" or a "rebellion against" the feminist movement. Why use the most pejorative description available to us when less pejorative descriptions have ALSO been used by reliable sources? Badmintonhist (talk) 00:51, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

The word backlash is terse, accurate and appropriate. Some MRM people even publish a journal called The Backlash!—these people obviously embrace the term. Their example removes your main leverage, that the word backlash is somehow pejorative. I don't see the need to change it for a lesser formulation. Binksternet (talk) 01:16, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

The word "backlash" is value-laden. It implicitly suggests that the MRM is anti-feminist. It is a label that paints an entire movement. This is inaccurate. As even some of the feminist/post-modernist references listed above note -- there are both anti-feminist and pro-feminist groups that make up the MRM. The pro-feminist groups certainly would not have developed as a "backlash" to feminism. Other groups may take a neutral / uninterested stance re feminism, and just focus on men's issues and rights. Memills (talk) 01:45, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

In response to Binksternet, the fact that some element within the men's rights movement uses "backlash" as a rallying cry hardly "removes (my) main leverage." In fact, quite to the contrary. Modern social movements are replete with the ironic use of terms. Gays often now embracing insulting terms used against them such as "queer" and "dyke." Some blacks embracing the term "nigger." Conservatives lapping up Hillary Clinton's "vast right-wing conspiracy." No, the fact that some in the MRM use "backlash" as a positive rallying cry doesn't help your case in the least. The issue is whether WE should be using that description, pretty much in Wikipedia's voice, in our introduction, and we shouldn't be. Badmintonhist (talk) 02:00, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Memills, the pro-feminist Movement for the Establishment of Real Gender Equality (MERGE) people established their creed in March 1987 in Alberta, Canada.[12] It was not until 1995 that an American chapter was formed.[13] All of this mild woman-loving MRM activity happened after the feminist backlash of MRM origin which was in the '70s. The "Coalition of American Divorce Reform Elements" formed in 1971, and the "Men's Rights Association" formed in 1973. "Men's Liberation" was forming men's and father's rights groups by 1976. In 1977, Frederic Hayward of Cambridge, Massachusetts, formed Men's Rights Inc. He said "The things I'm advocating for men are the same things feminists have been advocating for women."[14] This is of course a backlash to the advances gained by feminism. Binksternet (talk) 03:25, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

"The things I'm advocating for men are the same things feminists have been advocating for women." That's not a "backlash" (which implies opposition). According to that esteemed NPOV reference source, er, Wikipedia, backlash " ...is a popular negative reaction to something which has gained popularity, prominence, or influence." (italics added) Memills (talk) 03:47, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

To be completely accurate, a backlash being a "negative reaction" isn't same as the term "backlash" having a pejorative connotation, although, of course, the term does have a pejorative connotation. As both Memills' and Binksternet's latest statements help to show, the movement is too complex for Wikipedia to be using a pejorative, brand-them-all noun such "backlash" to describe it. Badmintonhist (talk) 04:00, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

The Wikipedia definition is not so good... the Backlash (sociology) article has no references at all! Merriam Webster says "strong adverse reaction". Jeffery Scott Mio describes the new definition to have come to the fore following Susan Faludi's 1991 book Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women.[15] Faludi names a wide swath of people as being part of the backlash against feminism, but she does not leave out the MRM. She describes a significant group of men who emerged from survey data in 1986, the men having in common several characteristics: they were mostly single, they had a median age of 33, and they were not succeeding in the workplace. These "downscale" men were underemployed, they were too easily laid off, they had no savings and they had little hope. This group made up 20% of the US adult population, and they were resentful of society, especially resentful of women in their lives who were apparently more powerful than they. These men were not the successful and self-assured men who felt confident of women's new rights. Faludi says that the unsuccessful men who "feared and reviled feminism" "dominated the ranks" of the early men's rights movement. Binksternet (talk) 06:03, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Sorry Binksternet but I don't see anything in what you have just written other than (in the words of my verbose son's Junior high adviser) "superfluous discourse". Faludi is one author and she is a polemicist more than anything else. Who cares?Badmintonhist (talk) 06:31, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Faludi had a huge influence, no matter your opinion of her. Her book sold millions, a best-seller for nine months, and it sparked further scholarship by others. It led to her next book, Stiffed: The Betrayal of the American Man, which is about resentful American men, very much on topic. I named her directly because I am getting the impression that she is the elephant in the room. Binksternet (talk) 13:37, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

While "backlash" may sound negative, the MRM is seen in a negative light, unlike feminism. Unpopular views happen to be unpopular, and we are supposed to report that. TFD (talk) 07:17, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

In point of fact BOTH are seen in a negative light by their enemies. What's next? Fascism is seen in a negative light, unlike communism. The Yankees are seen in a negative light, unlike the Red Sox? Badminton is seen in a negative light, unlike tennis? Well that last one might be true in the USA.Badmintonhist (talk) 08:49, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Binkernet's list has conclusively demonstrated that the men's rights movement is considered a backlash movement by multiple academic and other sources. Would you have us cover this up for some reason? And yes, Badmintonhist, if multiple significant reliable sources made those observations of baseball teams or sports, then we would report that too. To give some more appropriate comparisons, note that what we are seeing here is exactly what happens on pages like Holocaust denial, Homeopathy, Shakespeare authorship question etc]; supporters of the non-mainstream view try to "soften" the language of mainstream sources to put their own fringe views in a better light. But that is now how this encyclopedia is written. Slp1 (talk) 12:59, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Then WE should say it rather like you have just said it in your first sentence; i.e. "Many observers have described the Men's Rights Movement as a backlash to the feminist movement", not "it is considered a backlash to the the feminist movement." Of course, even more observers have described it as a response to the feminist movement so there is nothing wrong with describing it that way either. Hope this helps. Badmintonhist (talk) 15:19, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Can you prove that "even more observers have described it as a response to the feminist movement"? Such proof would be helpful in this discussion. Binksternet (talk) 15:31, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

(edit conflict) Why should this article use a different formulation than that used in the Good Article Holocaust Denial article, and as discussed in the 1st FAQ on the talkpage?Slp1 (talk) 15:35, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

The hell? Why would we? Arkon (talk) 16:14, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Because we'd like this article to be policy-compliant, and that one clearly is?Slp1 (talk) 16:25, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

So are a couple thousand others, again, why that one? Arkon (talk) 16:38, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Because it addresses precisely this issue. Do you have an example of other good or featured article that has addressed this issue and come to a different conclusion? If not, I think this conversation is over. --Slp1 (talk) 17:03, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

I have no idea what issue you think that article has in common with this one, that's why I am asking. Arkon (talk) 17:06, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Hey, you're more of the detail man, Binksternet. As I've readily confessed many times, I'm horrible with computers. Have trouble even cutting and pasting. For a starter, however, a mere starter. You might pair the phrases "men's rights movement" and "response to feminism" and the phrases "men's rights movement" and "backlash to (or against) feminism and see what you come up with in a Google search. Also take that list of books you presented (and others on the topic) and see if they also describe the MRM as a response to or a "reaction to feminism." I'm off to a singing gig. Badmintonhist (talk) 16:11, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

The term response usually means positive and proportional, for example, the government responded to feminism by introducing gender equality laws. We would not for example say "the patient responded to treatment" if the treatment killed him, although his death would have been a response. So we could replace "backlash" with "disproportionate negative response." TFD (talk) 16:00, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Badmintonhist's suggestion that we replace the academic term backlash with "rebellion against" in the name of neutrality is even more problematic. To "rebel" means to oppose someone or something that is dominant or authoritative. People usually rebel against God, the kind, the state, dogmas, etc. The implication would be that feminism is so dominant and authoritative that MRM activists need to rebel against it, an implication not supported by the sources. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 21:28, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Hmmh! Just noticed Sonicyouth86's comment immediately above. For the record, I said that "response to," "reaction to," or even "rebellion against," would be preferable to "backlash to." In other words, of the three I suggested as alternatives, "rebellion against" was the least desirable but still more neutral than "backlash to." That's because, unlike "backlash," "rebellion" does not necessarily have a negative connotation. Badmintonhist (talk) 21:21, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

I would agree that all of these sound better than "backlash", which caught my eye upon reading the article. I think the problem is that the word, while accurately describing many parts of MRM, also implies that there is no case of cooperation between feminism and MRM, and that they are by definition opposing movements. That is an oversimplification. Happeningfish (talk) 17:11, 24 August 2013 (UTC)

"Backlash" works precisely because it is so accurate. Feminism was making inroads in family law and other social changes, and the men's rights movement reacted negatively. The notion that some degree of cooperation exists between MRM and feminists is unsupportable, and in any case it does not bear upon the backlash origin. Binksternet (talk) 18:28, 24 August 2013 (UTC)

Conflicting paradigms in the social sciences, sex/gender differences studies, and politics

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

---

The above discussion reveals the problems that occur when there are two opposing perspectives, yet one (the MRM) is allowed to be described/defined by the other (gender feminism) as if the latter was a neutral arbiter. For example, most in the MRM would not agree that their movement / concerns are a "backlash" to feminism, but that is how the MRM is described in the article. In this case, it would be more accurate to say "According to many feminists, the MRM is a backlash to feminism."

User Peudo made an relevant observation:

"We have to acknowledge that in (the) social sciences, there is no single prevailing paradigm but different schools. We can't just interpret one or a few sources as the only truth in non-exact sciences. ...scholars often have differing views which they sometimes debate in the publications. The feminist school in sociology represents one normative view that inherently disagrees with the MRM. The feminist scholarly view can't be the only one covering the whole subject. I think it's a rather fundamental acknowledgement editors must make when editing [an] article. Claiming otherwise shows a rather grave misunderstanding of social sciences... "

A problem here is that some editors apparently believe this article should be filtered through the lens of particular paradigms: gender feminism, post-modernism and/or social constructionism. These currently dominate "gender studies" and "women's studies" departments (and even some men's studies programs headed by male feminists). References coming from authors with these perspectives are not NPOV -- they are embedded in, and wedded to, particular theoretical and political perspectives. This is not currently acknowledged in the article.

Many academics in other fields of study hold such "gender studies" departments in very low esteem because they are so thoroughly theoretically in-bred. What passes for scholarship is often not empirical but is instead rhetorical polemics (basically, POV pushing dressed in academic language). A complaint of many in the MRM is that these academic departments have been over-run and lack theoretical and political diversity.

Other approaches to understanding and/or dealing with sex/gender differences reject the basic assumptions of gender feminism and social constructionism (i.e., that sex roles are arbitrary and socially constructed, that "the patriarchy" is designed to oppress women, etc.). Opposing perspectives include scientific positivism, equity feminism, sexual selection theory, parental investment theory, brain sexual differentiation theory (hormonal differentiation of the brain during prenatal development and beyond, etc.).

When there are major, conflicting paradigms regarding a topic, a WP article should acknowledge this. Further when statements are made about the MRM, it would be helpful to note the theoretical perspective of the author(s) -- where the author is coming from. Memills (talk) 16:49, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

I've seen Bbb23's warning below, so I will keep this very brief and to the point and will not be responding beyond this. Supporters of minority and fringe positions on topics such as Holocaust denial, Homeopathy, Chiropractic, Aids denialism etc frequently make the same point: that reliable, highest quality sources are internally and constitutionally biased against the topic, and they need to be excluded/their bias attributed/replaced etc, etc. This perspective shows a fundamental misunderstanding of what WP:NPOV is: "Editing from a neutral point of view (NPOV) means representing fairly, proportionately, and, as far as possible, without bias, all of the significant views that have been published by reliable sources on a topic." It is incumbent on those who wish to redress any perceived imbalance to actually produce sources of other "significant views". Pudeo, as cited here, states that there are "different schools" and "The feminist scholarly view can't be the only one covering the whole subject". If either or both of of these two statements are correct, then it should be trivial to produce scholarly or other high quality sources about men's rights and/or the men's rights movement from these different schools. Just as at the other articles, editors who claim that there are such NPOV issues have repeatedly been asked to produce high quality reliable sources to counterbalance those that have been found to date. But the silence has been deafening.

Moving forward, I think it may simply be best to work up some FAQs for this talkpage that we can point quickly and briefly when somebody brings up particular subjects for the umpteenth time. Slp1 (talk) 17:54, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

While I accept that some fields of study are dominated by people with a certain view of their subject, scholarship does not exist in isolation. Most scholars on conservatism for example are conservative, but that does not mean that political science textbooks present a pro-conservative view. Also, feminism is not the only academic area where the MRM is studied. Of course one could argue that social sciences are inherently biased, but then that is dispute about the policy rather than something that should be discussed here. TFD (talk) 18:13, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Normally, I would be happy to reply. But, frankly the threat of sanctions/bans (below) tends to put a chill on open discussions. To get input from some uninvolved, neutral sources, I've asked for input at WP:3. Memills (talk) 18:18, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

When there are a half dozen and more people discussing an issue, the fine folks at Third Opinion will not take the case. Their purpose is to solve disputes between two individual editors.

Regarding the notion that some people here think "this article should be filtered through the lens of particular paradigms", I say you failed to prove it. I think that existing scholarship on the MRM topic is scholarship, not advocacy. If you want to bring in scholars with a different background, you are welcome to find them. Binksternet (talk) 19:08, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

The only sources that matter Memills are third party mainstream scholars. If you don't like what they say ... tough. And no just because scholars take an ideological stance does not make them unreliable. Trying to ban certain scholarship from this page (as you are doing above) is the opposite of NPOV. Again your above post shows a clear misunderstanding of it. Scholars do not need to be neutral. Our record of their work needs to be neutral. Take Cold Fusion as an example - we don't write about that topic in a supportive way, we write about it in the way 3rd party reliably sourced scholars do. We record what the mainstream discourse is. If that discourse on Cold Fusion changes in 5 years then the page will change. You've been fond of comparing articles to Feminism well here's an apt example. If wikipedia existed in 1901 the Feminism page would reflect teh dominant view of feminism at that time (dismissive). Indeed if wikipedia existed 150-200 years ago the topic of Aether would be recorded as if it were fact, because that was how it was recorded then. It's not wikipedia's job to change the discourse on a topic and attempting to use this site to advocate for a change of discourse in the real world is highly disruptive--Cailil ^talk 19:25, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Here are just a couple of scholars who make the case for men's issues and rights, and who suggest that a feminist lens on those issues is biased.

From psychology professor Roy Baumeister's book "Is There Anything Good About Men? How Cultures Flourish by Exploiting Men":

The reasons that it has recently become taboo to say positive things about men are rooted in the women's movement and its wide-ranging influence (p. 3) ...perhaps we are more accustomed seeing how society exploits women, but perhaps that is all the more reason to take a look at the other side too. (p 6) Any fair assessment of modern American feminism would have... to acknowledge... that some of it has fostered hatred and readily sacrificed the pursuit of truth of the sake of self-interested political gain. (p. 8) ...I strongly suspect that there is no point in debating with feminists. The business of feminism was aptly summarized by Daphne Patai and Noretta Koertge, two scholars who have spent their careers in Women's Studies programs and who wrote a thoughtful book, "Professing Feminism," on what passes for scholarly activity in these departments. Crucially they pointed out that most feminists do not pay any attention to criticisms from non-feminists. They listen a little bit to criticism from each other--but that mainly concerns the purity of their commitment to feminist politics and doctrine. When scientists criticize each other, they focus mainly on research methods and how well different possible theories fit the data. That sort of thing is not common in Women's Studies departments, according to Patai and Koetgre. That means that even if an outsider like me made the most brilliant correct, and insightful point against some feminist claim, the feminists wouldn't listen or change their view one iota. (p. 9)

A couple of quotes from philosophy professor David Benatar's book "The Second Sexism: Discrimination Against Boys and Men":

I distinguished between egalitarian feminists and partisan feminists. The former seek equality of the sexes, whereas the latter seek the advancement of female interests (irrespective of whether that advances equality). Partisan feminism does entail some unfairness to men. (p. 240) ...Feminist excesses are also to be found in the rationalizations that are frequently employed. ...they curiously always reach the conclusion that it is the interests of females that ought to prevail. There is always some reason, as we have seen, why the interests of females are of paramount importance. (p. 243) ...Perhaps the most serious cases of feminist excess are those in which scholars -- many themselves feminists -- have been threatened or harassed by highly partisan and intolerant feminists who have deemed their work threatening. (p. 244)

Memills (talk) 22:34, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

That a few scholars see others as taking a negative view does not disqualify that body of work. The point remains as above, 2 scholars might consider the mainstream view on Cold Fusion as biased. That does not mean those mainstream views are censored/altered/prejudiced in order to reflect a preferred POV. What you are arguing for is not a neutral point of view it is a neutered point of view. A truncated record of scholarship and thus a misrepresentation of the mainstream of 3rd party reliable sources. Mentioning Benatar and others with the above POV is fine as long as the record is accorded due weight, but attempting to use their existence to give them the appearance of equal weight vis-a-vis other views or to reduce the weight of other mainstream views is POVpushing. Nor is appropriate to use this page for soapboxing about subjects--Cailil ^talk 23:49, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

You are not seeing the forest for the trees -- this issue is embedded in the larger conflict two major, conflicting theoretical paradigms in the social sciences. To wit: social constructionism vs. biological/environmental interactionism. The latter rejects gender feminism's theoretical assumptions regarding the genesis of sex roles / sex differences as being solely socially constructed.

"A few scholars" is incorrect. Here is a list of just a few books by nature-nurture interactionists (and I'll limit the list to only those with a female author or coauthor) who reject the gender feminist perspective on sex differences:

Margo Wilson and Martin Daly (1983) Sex, evolution and behavior.

Helen Fisher (1983) The Sex Contract: The Evolution of Human Behavior

Laura Betzig (1986) Despotism and Differential Reproduction: A Darwinian View of History

Laura Betzig, Monique Borgerhoff Mulder and Paul Turke (1988) Human Reproductive Behaviour: A Darwinian Perspective

Helen Fisher (1994) Anatomy of Love: A Natural History of Mating, Marriage, and Why We Stray

Linda Mealey (2000). Sex differences. NY: Academic Press.

Nancy Etcoff (2000) Survival of the Prettiest: The Science of Beauty.

Bobbi Low (2000). Why sex matters. NJ: Princeton University Press.

Anne Campbell (2002). A Mind of Her Own: The Evolutionary Psychology of Women

Louise Barrett, Robin Dunbar, and John Lycett (2002) Human Evolutionary Psychology

Olivia Judson (2003). Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation: The Definitive Guide to the Evolutionary Biology of Sex

Louann Brizendine The Male Brain (2010), The Female Brain (2011)

Judith Lipton and David Barash (2009) How Women Got Their Curves

Sarah Blaffer Hrdy (2011) Mothers and Others: The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding

Maryann Fisher (2013) Evolution's Empress: Darwinian Perspectives on the Nature of Women

The suggestion that only a few scholars reject the foundational theory of gender feminism -- the social constructionist view of the genesis of gender roles -- is incorrect. Memills (talk) 00:32, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Sounds like grist for another, different mill. This article is about the men's rights movement, and Wikipedia is not going to dump good sources just because you have argued in a general sense against their perceived bias, because the authors are feminist scholars. This grist should be carried to some other article, one about how unfair it is for non-feminists to argue with feminist scholars. Binksternet (talk) 04:10, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Yes, Memills' list is a series of texts closely related to evolutionary psychology; none of them are about MRM, so have no relevance to this article. Mathsci (talk) 05:00, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Agreed.Slp1 (talk) 12:45, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

I've checked Memills' quotes as far as I can and note an extreme cherrypicking sources has been going on; as one might guess from the ellipis, I suppose. Here are a few other cherrypicked quotes to balance out the quotes he has provided:

• "The Global World Forum recently rated most nations on various dimensions of equality, and it found not a single country in which women generally enjoy superior status over men. Nor did the Forum find full equality was reached in any. Thus, men have higher status than women in every country in the world today". Baumeister p4
• "Many cultures do exploit women, some more than others, and sometimes cruelly." Baumeister p.5
• "Nor is this book a pitch to gain victim status for men. The modern widespread eagerness to claim victim status for one’s own group makes me ill. If you read this book and end up thinking the main point was that men instead of women should be considered victims, or even assume this status alongside women, then you have completely missed my point". Baumeister p. 5
• "Any fair assessment of modern American feminism would have to assert that on the one hand, there has been some brilliant and insightful scholarship that has advanced our collective understanding of the truth. Likewise, it would have to acknowledge, on the other hand, that some of it has fostered hatred and readily sacrificed the pursuit of truth for the sake of self-interested political gain. Feminism is a big tent, covering many different views and attitudes." p8 I have bolded the parts of this sentence that Memills has chosen to quote above -draw your own conclusions.

Since I can't do the same for the Benatar book as I don't have it to hand at present, I will point out a comment or two from a generally positive review from The New Statesman. [16]

• "Benatar is not a Backlash merchant. He does not argue that men have a worse time than women; that feminism has gone too far; that men are now the oppressed sex; or that sexism against women does not exist. On the contrary, he repeatedly details the many forms of injustice faced by women across the world, and applauds efforts to address them. Indeed the clue is in the title: not “The New Sexism” or “The True Sexism” but “The Second Sexism.” Second, meaning in addition or secondary to the first sexism which is, of course, against women. Benatar does not blame feminism for anti-male discrimination, rightly noting that most such injustices long predate the women’s movement."
• "Nor, BBC Online readers, is Benatar a champion of the Men’s Rights Movement. In the book he notes astutely that men’s groups can become “fora for self-pity and for ventilating hyperbolic views that are not checked or moderated by alternative opinions.”"

I am once again appalled, Memills, at the lengths that you will go to to misrepresent and misquote sources.Slp1 (talk) 12:45, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Please, I am appalled too. Our mutual appallment is irrelevant here, tho.

I am afraid we are talking past one another. My point, again, is this. There is no one "main stream" paradigm in the social sciences. There are two primary paradigms (social constructionism vs. nature-nurture interactionism), and their basic assumptions are in conflict. Feminist theory is based on social constructionism. Scholars and other folks who reject social constructionism are naturally more skeptical of claims derived from feminist theory / social constructionism.

Given clashing paradigms, it is a service to the reader to identify from which paradigm critiques are coming from. For example, in the creationism/evolution debate, it is helpful to the reader to identify the paradigm -- e.g., "According to creationists, the complexity of the design of the eye reveals its 'irreducible complexity.'" "However, according to evolutionary biologist, the eye is indeed complex, but that complexity is not irreducible and can be explained by step-by-step cumulative selection over time." Without these identifying 'paradigm prefixes', the reader sees "The eye reveals irreducible complexity." (long reference list) and "The eye is complex, but not irreducibly so." (long reference list). This only leaves the reader with irreducible confusion. Identifying the paradigm helps to clarify the underlying assumptions and the fundamental issues.

Similarly, here it is appropriate to also include 'paradigm prefixes': "According to many feminist scholars, the MRM is misogynist." "According to many MRM proponents, the MRM is not misogynist."

This is the crux of my (and other editors) suggestion. It is not difficult to do, and it would make the article both more accurate and clear. Memills (talk) 17:56, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Warnings

This page is under article probation. That means that as an uninvolved admin I have broad discretion to impose sanctions for disruptive editing on any page related to the MRM, including this page. I am particularly troubled by the backlash section above and the newly added paradigm section just above. Specifically, the edits by Memills and by Badmintonhist are disruptive. They are similar to the edits that led to a topic ban imposed on another editor. The two users are defying consensus as to what should and should not be included in these articles and pushing an agenda that is clear on its face. Their defense that the "other side" is pushing their own agenda is unsupported by any objective measure. The disruption comes not only from their unsupported points of view but also by pushing them beyond what can be considered reasonable discourse on Wikipedia. Although warnings are not required for me to impose sanctions, I decided that intervening now might head off bans and/or blocks.--Bbb23 (talk) 16:58, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

disruptive? Seriously? Someone posts a thoughtful critique of the prevailing dogma and you call it disruptive? Why don't you let the eds here discuss in peace without your warnings.--Obi-Wan Kenobi (talk) 18:10, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

What a shameless load of hogwash, Bbb23! Badmintonhist (talk) 20:48, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

If by dogma you, Obiwankenobi, mean the requirement to stick to reliable sources then the critique of said "dogma" is not very helpful. Is there any doubt that all the cited references describe the MRM as a backlash? No. As a side note, I do not consider a discussion where you describe editors as members of a "protection squad" as particularly peaceful. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 21:51, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

Also see WP:Multiple Editor Ownership.

However, rather than trading barbs back and forth, or threatening sanctions on editors who edit in good faith, a review of some these issues by uninvolved neutral third parties, e.g., WP:peer review, seems long overdue and might be helpful. Memills (talk) 23:59, 27 July 2013 (UTC)

1929 article

This definitely exists and is written by a reputable source, so I included it in the history section. Any improvements to suggest? I included an excerpt to establish what Moulton wrote. Ranze (talk) 08:01, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Scholars

Noticed a lot of edits in June regarding a "scholars" statement tending to give authority to perception of the movement. Here's the current incarnation as I see it:

The men's rights movement's claims and activities have been critiqued by scholars and others, and sectors of the movement have been described as misogynist.

I am wondering if perhaps "feminist scholars" could be appropriate, this would require confirming whether or not all scholars are feminist or not, as it was alleged in edit history that some were. Furthermore, I find this sentence lacks clarity. We can break it into several points based on construction:

1. The men's rights movement's claims and activities have been critiqued by scholars
2. The men's rights movement's claims and activities have been critiqued by others
3. sectors of the movement have been described as misogynist

Now the confusion here: when we say "described as misogynist" it is unclear WHO is saying this. Is it 'scholars' or is it 'others' or is it both? I would like to see this sentence restructured to make this more clear. Really "critiqued claims and activities" is somewhat vague I think, I question the purpose of such a vague statement. Honestly I question the relevance of "others" at all.

Look at if we said this about any other issue:

"Scientist's claims and activities have been critiqued by others"

Is that important? Does it belong in encyclopedia? Literally every topic under the sun must have inevitably been 'critiqued' by 'others'. I think we need to establish a higher level of importance here. 'Others' is not notable. 'Scholars' is, and other groups might be, but if there are others besides scholars whose opinions on MRM are notable, I think we need a more specific description imparting why they are relevant moreso than 'others'.

We can do a name breakdown here, of the references that go with this statement, and define who they are. Here are the seven references I see (currently bulleted 4 to 10) after this statement:

1. Sarah Maddison
2. Kenneth Clatterbaugh
3. Chris Beasley
4. Michael Kaufman and Michael Kimmel
5. Robert Menzies
6. Michael Kaufman and Harry Brod
7. Bob Pease

• Clatterbaugh, Kenneth C. (1997). Contemporary perspectives on masculinity: men, women, and politics in modern society (2nd ed.). Boulder: Westview Press. ISBN 978-0-8133-2701-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Menzies, Robert (2007). "Virtual Backlash: Representation of Men's "Rights" and Feminist "Wrongs" in Cyberspace". In Boyd, Susan B (ed.). Reaction and Resistance: Feminism, Law, and Social Change. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. pp. 65–97. ISBN 978-0-7748-1411-9. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)

So going by alphabetized surname, here are the "scholars" we should probably just go and verify are scholars, and then see whether or not they identify as feminist:

1. Brod: LACKS Wikipedia article
2. Beasley: LACKS Wikipedia article, mentioned him on disambig
3. Clatterbaugh: PhD in philosophy, chair of Philo in U of Washington, also wrote "The Oppression Debate in Sexual Politics" in "Rethinking Masculinity: Philosophical Explorations in Light of Feminism" in 1992
4. Kaufman: LACKS Wikipedia article, mentioned him on disambig
5. Kimmel: categorized under "american feminists"
6. Maddison: PhD in " the Discipline of Government and International Relations", wrote "Collective identity and Australian Feminist Activism"
7. Menzies: LACKS Wikipedia article, mentioend him on disambig
8. Pease: LACKS Wikipedia article, will discuss changing Robert Allen Pease's page into a disambig, pretty certain not same guy.

Establishing who these 8 people are is only the first step though. Then we actually have to interpret the references. Clearly the point where we can assume others to correctly interpret references in good faith has past and we should discuss them one by one to see what each is actually saying. I believe every reference should provide an excerpt which we can show to be correctly interpreted to support how it is paraphrased in points in the articles.

So, for those five who lack a Wikipedia article:

1. Brod
2. Beasley
3. Kaufman
4. Menzies
5. Pease

Please create articles for them and/or establish who they are as reputable scholars.

For those with articles:

1. Kenneth Clatterbaugh
2. Michael Kimmel
3. Sarah Maddison

These are perhaps, due to having enough notability to have Wikipedia articles about them, perhaps who we should focus on as the 'scholars' of the group. All three have written in association with feminism though, so their neutrality on labelling MRM as 'misogynist' is debatable. Do we have any scholars who don't write about feminism who hold such an opinion? Ranze (talk) 09:02, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Please review WP:IRS, WP:NPOV and WP:V. There is absolutely no requirement for sources to have articles written about scholars/sources to show that they are notable/reputable and their views "significant". It is a wholly novel suggestion, that has no basis in policy at all. Slp1 (talk) 12:53, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Again this is anti-NPOV. This is an attempt to label or segregate 3rd party mainstream reliable sources that may not fit with how elements of the men's rights movements' want to be described. Wikipedia's policies are crystal clear on this Ranze. Wikipedia records all mainstream reliably sourced material without interpretation--Cailil ^talk 13:48, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Per WP:IRS, there is no need to analyze the sources as individuals, to strike down certain of them because of their background. Suggesting that we do so smacks of advocacy for the MRM topic. This discussion should be hatted as out of process. Binksternet (talk) 15:24, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Per my comment in the section above: It is appropriate to include 'paradigm prefixes' to help the reader identify from which of several clashing paradigms a claim is coming: "According to many feminist scholars, the MRM is misogynist." "According to many MRM proponents, the MRM is not misogynist." Without them, it is confusing and less informative. That is all that is being requested here. It would make the article both more accurate and informative. Memills (talk) 18:04, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Spot on, Memills. There are, indeed, numerous wordings preferable to the current"The MRM is considered to be a backlash to the feminist movement" which, in addition to its POV problems, is also stylistically awkward. Badmintonhist (talk) 18:39, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

Per discussion above, I edited the lede to read:

The men's rights movement (MRM) is a social movement and part of the larger men's movement. It has contestsed claims that men have greater power, privilege or advantage than women and focuses on what it has identified as issues of male disadvantage, discrimination and oppression.[1][2] The men's rights movement has been involved in a variety of areas related to law (including family law, parenting, reproduction and domestic violence), government services (including education, compulsory military service and social safety nets), and health that they believe are biased towards women.

Feminists have critiqued the MRM's claims and activities, and they have accused some sectors of the movement as being misogynist.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9] According to many feminists, the MRM is considered to be a backlash to the feminist movement.[10] However, according to many MRM activists, the MRM, or masculinism, is not necessarily an oppositional perspective to feminism, but is complmentary to it. [11]

Mathsci immediately reverted, claiming POV (disagree -- identifying paradigms, per discussion above promotes NPOV and accuracy) and he claimed that changes were not discussed on the Talk Page. They were (above). Rather than immediately revert (which just encourages an edit war), it would have been helpful for Mathsci to discuss the edits here first. Memills (talk) 18:29, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

No, Memills, POV edits that misrepresent the source should be reverted and I agree with the revert. Per BRD, it is up to you to get agreement for your edits. I will enumberate a number of specific errors with edit.

• "Feminists have critiqued the MRM's claims and activities, and they have accused some sectors of the movement as being misogynist." The sources already in the article make clear that it is not only feminists that critique the claims and activities, or describe sectors as misogynist. The SLPC is not "feminists". The Canadian government report (in the McElroy articleyou cited) is not "feminists". The Boston Globe is not "feminists". Glenn Sacks is not "feminists".
• "According to many feminists', the MRM is considered to be a backlash to the feminist movement." The article you yourself cited has one father's rights activist saying ""I have very little patience for feminists. This notion that because we are opposed to the feminists' political agenda [doesn't mean we are misogynist]...." That's not an admission of backlash? Note that per this news article this same man lost a defamation suit against the Canadian government report which "he contended characterized him as an anti-woman hatemonger". The website of his group features/d "a swastika, four arms altered to the letter F over a photo of a baby making a rude gesture with one finger", with the caption "We are all tired of feminazism. So stop it, okay,". In Fox article, Men's rights supporter Wendy McElroy, states that certain sectors of feminism has replace[d reasoned argument with ad hominem onslaught and has sparked a hate-filled backlash at the fringes of the Men's Rights Movement, where women are hated as a class in tit-for-tat fashion..", and in doing so supports the notion of both a backlash and misogeny.
• "The complementary, not oppositional perspective to feminism" is more interesting. My main problems is that we don't add new information to the lead; Mark Toogood doesn't not seem to be a major figure in the movement[17]; he was associated with the fathers' rights movement not the men's rights; and is talking about masculinism, which isn't necessarily a synonym for men's rights, based on that article. But I do think that maybe this article could do with a sentence or two on more on the implied more moderate men's rights activists/activism, if some more good sources could be found. Slp1 (talk) 19:29, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

Glad to read that you believe that the article needs more material/emphasis re the more moderate aspects of the MRM movement. I agree. There are outliers/radicals in most every movement. As one example of a representative of the more moderate perspectives, I believe Warren Farrell pretty much fits the bill.

Note above that I did not say "all" feminists / masculinists. I specifically said "many." I believe that is is an accurate description, and that it should be reflected in the lede. Memills (talk) 20:12, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

I see that Memills has been topic banned, but just to quickly respond that many of Farrell's concerns are already included in the article, and indeed for some he is the source. What I was talking about was somebody writing about the men's rights movement more moderate wing, which might even include how they acknowledge the problems of and are standing up against more extreme elements. This Sacks article is something of a source for that, but it would be good to find others if they exist. Slp1 (talk) 17:33, 30 July 2013 (UTC)

You can identify "primary paradigms (social constructionism vs. nature-nurture interactionism)" all you want when you teach evolutionary psychology to a class of freshmen, Memills. You can tell them that the social sciences are dominated by social constructionism (i.e., the alleged standard social science model) perspective, and that EP is the real deal being nature-nurture interactionist and all. But this isn't the time and place to stick it to the man (i.e., the social sciences). It's about the highly reliable sources that describe the MRM in a way that you disagree with. Tough. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 20:15, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

Feminism is a paradigm. Maculinism / the MRM are paradigms. We do a disservice to the reader if we do not include that information with sentence prefixes such as "According to many feminists...", "According to many masculinists..." etc.

As I noted above, imagine saying in a WP article "Humans were designed by God" (long ref list)" followed by "Humans were designed by evolutionary processes." (long ref list). Not helpful. Better: "According to creationists, humans were designed by God" (long ref list) followed by "According to evolutionary biologists, humans were designed by evolutionary processes." (long ref list). Without acknowledging the paradigms, you have confusing dueling statements without appropriate context. Memills (talk) 20:33, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

That the MRM is a backlash movement is the majority view expressed in most academic sources about the MRM. That "Humans were designed by God" is not an academic majority view. Please save your lectures on paradigms ("social constructionism" vs. "nature-nurture interactionism") and "creationism" (i.e., defined by evolutionary psychologists as everyone who opposes evolutionary psychology) for the students. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 20:44, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

It would be more accurate to say "most academic feminists and feminist activists." (Show me a reference that shows the results of a poll of academics, feminist and non-feminist, who do / don't believe the MRM is a backlash. Don't think there is one.) Also, WP doesn't restrict sources to only academic ones, especially on political, rather than scientific, issues. Memills (talk) 21:00, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

You and your confreres have repeatedly been asked for reliable sources showing that there is any different academic school of thought on the topic of men's rights and the men's rights movement. As it stands, your argument smacks of exactly the kind marginalization that a creationist would wish to add to a WP article e.g. "(Most/Many) evolutionary scientists state that humans were designed by evolutionary processes." Surely you can see the thoroughly inappropriate marginalization the mainstream, majority perspective. Slp1 (talk) 17:33, 30 July 2013 (UTC)

POV-pushing in the lede

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

---

Memill's substantial edit to the lede did not have consensus here. The changes were non-neutral, yet appear to have been written as if in the voice of wikipedia. The edit gave undue weight to what appears to be Memills' personal point of view. Mathsci (talk) 18:48, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

You apparently have not read the discussions above. Might be a good first start... Memills (talk) 19:09, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

I have seen the discussions above and the warning that you received, which you appear to have ignored. No sources have been discussed recently that relate directly to the MRM. A previous discussion which you started was hatted because it was leading nowhere. Your interpretation of "consensus" seems not to be in line with wikipedia policy. Per WP:BRD, please provide other editors with relevant reliable sources concerning the MRM to justify your substantial changes to the lede. A list of possibly irrelevant references is not sufficient. Mathsci (talk) 19:29, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

...entirely misses the point of the discussions above. We know all that. This has to do with a broader issue re identifying the paradigms from which claims are coming from, which can help to make the entire article more NPOV, accurate and fairly balanced (which is entirely consistent with the mission of WP). Memills (talk) 20:19, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

This has to do with activists' understandable difficulties to accept the way the MRM is described in reliable sources. This has nothing to do with "identifying paradigms" and what you term "social constructionism" and "nature-nurture interactionism" elsewhere. Your belief that the reliable sources in the article take a "social constructionist" stance and that you need to point out their "bias" from your evolutionary psychology perspective is misguided. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 20:35, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

I had an edit conflict and have responded specifically to problematic aspects of Memill's material above.--Slp1 (talk) 19:31, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

To me this is less a matter of sources than it is of wording. Given the sources that already exist for it, a better (both more neutral and less awkward) formulation for the fourth sentence of the current lead would be something like "Many scholars and other observers have described the men's rights movement as a backlash to the feminist movement." It's hard for me to see why anyone would object to this. Badmintonhist (talk) 20:38, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

I've revert the edit including this wording. For one thing, the lead is supposed to summarize the text, not introduce new information. Also, as noted above, academics, lay people and even the men's rights movement itself consider it to be a backlash and even celebrate it. e.g. [18]. There doesn't seem to be any justification at all for saying "many scholars", for example, when no evidence has been provided for such a WP:WEASEL word. If there are specific sources which argue that it isn't a backlash movement, then please produce them and we can look at altering the article text and then the lead, of course. Slp1 (talk) 01:38, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

Not to mince words, or use weaselly ones, I'm right and you're wrong, Slp1. We can and should also change the text, of course, so that's not much of an issue. What our current sources demonstrate is exactly what I have suggested should be our wording: Many scholars and other observers have described the men's rights movement as a backlash to the feminist movement. It is really no more weaselly than our current wording: It is considered to be a backlash to the feminist movement which, of course, invites the question "by whom;" the answer being "by many scholars and other observers." The answer is not "by all scholars" of course; and no, we don't need to find scholars who explicitly argue against it being a "backlash" because disputing epithets given to certain social movements is rarely the work of scholars. It is enough that some don't use that description. As for the fact that some MRM folks embrace the term, as I basically explained to Binksternet, that and two dollars will get you a cup of coffee. Badmintonhist (talk) 02:58, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

Do you see a problem with "many scholars and other observers consider Aids to be caused by the HIV virus"? Or "many scholars and other observers consider that holocaust denial is anti-semitic"? I'm sure you do. The situation is an exact parallel. Unless there is some clear sources indicating that there is - at the very least - a minority academic perspective that this is not a backlash movement, then formulation you propose is a clear use of a weasel word to increase doubt. Slp1 (talk) 13:05, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

Slpl1, Please!! The situation is NOT "an exact parallel" to the examples you've given, especially the first. In that example you're comparing a matter of hard science to a highly subjective journalistic description. Basketballs to oranges. We don't have a choice as to what causes AIDS. We can't say, for example, that it is caused by a severe deficiency of Vitamin C because that would simply be false. But in the case of the men's rights movement there are all sorts of descriptions, ones used by "scholars" no less, that would not be false. We could say that the MRM is a countermovement to feminism, a reaction to feminism, a response to feminism, a rebellion against feminism, etc. And, by the way, were we addressing the subject of AIDS, we also wouldn't say "It is considered to be a caused by the HIV virus" would we? Rather, we would say that "AIDS is caused by the HIV virus" or, to more explicitly bring in outside authority, "AIDS has been determined to be caused by the HIV virus." That's because "is considered to be" also brings in a degree of subjectivity to the statement.

Your second example is closer to our situation and, to be honest, it isn't all that obviously unacceptable to me. However, in the case of Holocaust denial we are almost invariably dealing with clear-cut antisemitism and scholars and editors should call a spade a spade. In the case of the MRM, I think that both scholarly and popular literature will reflect that we are not dealing with the same degree of monolithic hatred. Moreover, unlike Holocaust denial, standard issue MRM causes don't reflect a flat-out denial of historical fact.

What I see in the present "It is considered to be a backlash to the feminist movement" wording, are editors taking the most negative description of the movement that they could "get away with" (saving the even less acceptable "misogynist" for a segment of the movement later in the lead) and then framing it in the least subjective manner that they could "get away with": "It is considered to be". I don't particularly like "backlash" in lead, but at least in should be framed in the more NPOV "many scholars and other observers have described it as a backlash . . . " Badmintonhist (talk) 18:52, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

• I have a question (in my capacity as an administrator), principally for Slp1 or Sonicyouth86, although any editor is welcome to answer. Hasn't there already been a discussion about the wording of this sentence on this page?--Bbb23 (talk) 19:40, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

Yes, you are quite right, there has, in the sections entitled "Backlash" and "Conflicting paradigms in the social sciences, sex/gender differences studies, and politics". Reviewing them, I see that I am repeating myself, and that there does not seem to be any consensus to change the current wording. Based on that, I will cease responding here, except to reiterate that if sources (rather than the personal opinions of editors) can be found to support proposed changes, then I am open to further discussion.Slp1 (talk) 20:04, 3 August 2013 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Criticism/misogyny section?

I believe this was discussed before but allegations of misogyny don't fit in "relation to feminism" because misogyny is not inherently a "feminist" issue and the groups making the claims (like SPLC) are not feminist per se.

My suggestion to have either a criticism or "claims of misogyny" section. --CartoonDiablo (talk) 18:59, 8 August 2013 (UTC)

Thanks for discussing this. I don't really agree that misogyny doesn't fit into "relation to feminism" section. I believe the two are very closely connected. See this [19] for example. The fact that multiple sources (e.g. SPLC) are making the claims are not relevant in this context, and simply strenthens the point; criticism sections are generally deprecated, and consensus on this page has not to have one. --Slp1 (talk) 12:07, 9 August 2013 (UTC)

In that case I think it's worth having an "allegations of misogyny" section to include that. It's definitely not POV in that it considers the criticisms to be allegations. CartoonDiablo (talk) 20:43, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

I don't agree. Per WP:UNDUE I don't see any reason why these claims should be given a separate section all to themselves.--Slp1 (talk) 18:20, 17 August 2013 (UTC)

I'm not sure if it's right to even have such criticisms on an article dealing with mens rights issues. Pleasetry (talk) 22:45, 19 August 2013 (UTC)

I'm not sure I understand your meaning. It sounds like you are saying that we should ignore well-sourced critical material on this topic. That would be completely contrary to WP:NPOV.Slp1 (talk) 22:57, 21 August 2013 (UTC)

On the topic of criticism etc, I notice a few times in the article where the MRM's positions are stated, that are then followed by 'critics say...' This reads terribly, and in a article regarding the movement, stating their positions would seem to be the point, while countering with a 'critics say...' seems to make the article argue with itself. I usually only see that formulation used on fringe science topics, and am not sure it is proper here. Arkon (talk) 23:25, 21 August 2013 (UTC)

Recent edits re prison sentences

Over the last few days there has been some back and forth adding and removal of a section which quotes a speech by a British MP, Philip Davies. Two editors have added it a total of four times and four separate editors (one of them me) have removed it once each, all of whom mention original research and synthesis. Based on the edit summaries given there is some confusion among those editors wishing to include the material.

• "vandalism". Good faith edits to remove what editors honestly believe to be Original research are not vandalism. Please review WP:VANDALISM
• "original research and synthesis". Having a source does not mean that an edit is not original research; please review WP:SYNTH to see how two sourced edits can be put together to create a new, original idea. In this case, the "new original idea" is that this particular argument is one made by men's rights movement. This has been explained in more detail in a section above, Philip Davies is not a member of the men's rights movement and does not mention men's rights in his speech. To connect this speech and this man to the men's rights movement is original research, synthesis and a possible BLP violation.

What I cannot understand is why this is so difficult for people to understand and how it actually benefits the MRM to have this policy. I'll give an example: the very Hansard article cited includes multiple other MPs disagreeing with Martin and putting forward other statistics which suggest that in certain contexts women are discriminated against in the judicial system. Ignoring the problematic question of why "positive" material has been cherry picked out of the whole text, I'll just point out that the "negative" material is also equally excluded, as is any other material which "disproves" men's rights talking points in contexts unconnected to the topic of men's rights movement. Slp1 (talk) 22:57, 21 August 2013 (UTC)

I don't have much of an opinion on the edits that have been made and removed that you mention. But in that section, why do we have to put most of the information in the voice of Warren Farrell, when we have other sources stating the same thing. Such as "But men are also the main targets of military violence and criminal assault, and many more men than women are imprisoned or executed." from the cite already included elsewhere in the article. Arkon (talk) 23:20, 21 August 2013 (UTC)

I think it would be great to expand the voices from Farrell and thanks for actually providing a source!! The problem is that Connell isn't talking about the men's rights movement either and in fact a paragraph later states that "The disadvantages listed above [including what you quote above] are, broadly speaking, the conditions of the advantages [of being male]" so it would be taking his words out of context, don't you agree? But surely there are some other voices talking about the MRM (including prominent men's rights voices) to broaden things on this matter? I don't think we should get into statistics (because there are so many countries, kinds of crime etc etc) but I don't have any problem with going beyond Farrell. It's just what I had to had when I was trying to write something on the topic. Slp1 (talk) 00:09, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

The beginning sentence to the section that includes that quote is "The diversity among men and masculinities is reflected in a diversity of men’s movements in the developed countries", so I believe it would be hard to argue that what follows is unrelated to the Men's rights movement. No, I don't agree that those words would be taken out of context, as they are a statement of fact (both in the real world and in the writers voice). As it reads now, it is presented as a claim of Farrel, unnecessarily, I think. Arkon (talk) 00:22, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

This "The diversity among men and masculinities.... " sentence actually comes much further on in the article than the original passage you cited. It doesn't head that section at all. But it is helpful because it shows that the requirement that there be an explicit connection made with the MRM doesn't just mean that only pro-MRM gets excluded. The section that it does begin describes several different, men's movements (such as white ribbon campaign, Men against Sexual Assault, gay men movements) and then makes an possible reference to men's rights groups describing them thus: "Explicit backlash movements also exist but have not generally had a great deal of influence. Men mobilizing as men to oppose women tend to be seen as cranks or fanatics. They constantly exaggerate women’s power. And by defining men’s interests in opposition to women’s, they get into cultural difficulties, since they have to violate a main tenet of modern patriarchal ideology—the idea that “opposites attract” and that men’s and women’s needs, interests, and choices are complementary." I would guess Connell is talking about men's rights groups (and maybe you do too) but he doesn't say so explicitly. My guess (and yours) is not relevant, so this material isn't going into the article in any form. Similarly with your supposition that Connell's comments about criminal justice are related to the men's rights movement. Slp1 (talk) 00:44, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

Apologies, you are right about that coming up in a different spot. Ctrl-F failed me horribly on that one. However, you still aren't making a strong argument. This isn't about what "we guess". The section is speaking to gender equality, stating facts and positions of the men's side. The entire cite is riddled with references, paragraphs, and sections devoted the movements specifically. Attempting to exclude parts because some combination of words are not present within a certain vicinity of a piece of information, when the context is clear isn't the way to go. Arkon (talk) 01:00, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

Actually it is you that is not making a strong argument. The following sentences are in the same paragraph "men collectively receive the bulk of income in the money economy and occupy most of the managerial positions" and "In the domain of power men collectively control the institutions of coercion and the means of violence (e.g., weapons)." Would you think these sentences should go in to this article about the men's rights movement? My guess is you wouldn't (and I'd agree!!). If you think about the reasoning for your answer, you'll understand the problem. You are picking the parts of that paragraph that you think are about men's rights and that's called unverifiable, original research and synthesis. Read the whole paragraph again in context and you'll see that Connell is making a series of contrasts that lead up to the conclusion that "The disadvantages listed above are, broadly speaking, the conditions of the advantages [of being male]": it's the opposite of a men's rights argument; which is not terribly surprising as Connell is pro-feminist. Slp1 (talk) 01:14, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

If you want to argue for inclusion of other information from that source, that's up to you, but do it in it's own section. We have a cite (already in the article) that if not completely about, is broadly about the MRM and it's arguments. We have a sentence attributed to Farrell, that the cite backs up. I'd gladly gather opinions from the OR board, if you continue to protest. Also, I'd suggest not mindreading my motives such as :You are picking the parts of that paragraph that you think are about men's rights. Arkon (talk) 01:28, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

I am not sure where you got the idea that I was arguing for the inclusion of that material. In fact I specifically agreed that the sentences should not be included. You are not getting my point. Maybe it is my fault, but perhaps you can do me the favour of reading my posts again and see if a second read-through helps. And then if you want to ask others by all means go ahead, but I can't imagine you are going to get a different answer from any experienced editor.

The article currently cites Connell for this phrase: "their arguments have been covered extensively in neoconservative media". The relevant passage appears on page 6 of Connell's article, where it says "In the United States, where authors such as Warren Farrell (1993) and Christina Hoff Sommers (2000), purporting to speak on behalf of men and boys, bitterly accuse feminism of injustice. Men and boys, they argue, are the truly disadvantaged group and need supportive programs in education and health, in situations of family breakup, and so forth. These ideas have not stimulated a social movement, with the exception of a small-scale (though active and sometimes violent) “father’s rights” movement in relation to divorce. The arguments have, however, strongly appealed to the neoconservative mass media, which have given them international circulation." There is an explicit link here to men's rights and father's rights authors and groups, that is utterly missing in the sentence you would wish to include. Slp1 (talk) 01:55, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

You keep speaking in hypotheticals that have nothing to do with what I am suggesting. Maybe that's -my- fault. We have the current statement in the article:

• Warren Farrell cites evidence that men receive harsher prison sentences and are more likely sentenced to death in the United States

The portion of the text from the cite that I've referenced (Again, already in the article. Also, you neglect the fact that multiple such explicit links are made in that article, well, because it's about this topic.):

• But men are also the main targets of military violence and criminal assault, and many more men than women are imprisoned or executed.

So, we have the options of adding this as an additional cite to the Farrell sentence or even rewording the text and take it out of Farrell's voice. Arkon (talk) 02:20, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

Hello Slp1, I was one of those people "protecting" the inclusion of this information. I am charmed by your presentation of the issue, so I am also making a good faith effort to understand your view and cooperate with its reason. So, you are saying that this text does not belong here because Philip Davies is not a Men's Rights Activist and therefore what he says, regardless of its factual veracity and relevance to the Men's Rights Issue, is not about the Men's Rights Movement. Is that your point? If that is so, I would like to ask you to look at the entire article and suggest how a similar thing isn't happening in all the sections. It is flipping back and forth between discussing the issues and reporting views of representatives of the Men's Rights Movement. I have a problem particularly with the repeated occurrence of "Critics suggest/argue ..." etc. Because that discusses the issues not the Men's Rights Movement. I would not mind the entire article to be condensed into a simple list of Men's Rights Issues with reference to Warren Farrell, Herb Goldberg, and more contemporary spokes persons of the movement, such as Karen Straughan. But I am not sure where you stop? Do you allow Erin Pizzey views? And why not Philip Davies? On what basis would you exclude Philip Davies from the Men's Rights Movement, if he is clearly speaking very passionately and with preparation about a central issue of the Men's Rights Movement? Thanks. Gschadow (talk) 00:38, 23 August 2013 (UTC)

I think what he's saying, or at least the summary of what he's saying is that it is inappropriate to present statements and viewpoints of single individuals as being those generally held by a group of people, especially when that single individual is not a part of or associated with that movement. Ironlion45 (talk) 04:55, 23 August 2013 (UTC)

Yes, more or less exactly, Ironlion45 (though I admit had to read your comment several times to understand what you are getting at.). If you remove "especially".

Gshadown: per WP:OR, we cannot include the views or arguments of people who are neither MRAs nor speaking about the MRM or MR activism in this article; this is an article about the MRM and not an article where we debate (or try to prove-one way of the other) the issues that the MRM focus on by bringing in information about the "issue" without a specific reference to the men's rights movement. This is the policy, but I have also tried to explain above why this is actually of benefit to those who wish to present the MRM movement in as positive a light as possible. Looking back in the history you will find versions of this article in which MR claims were extensively "debunked" by statistics and references that had no reference to the MR movement either. Another couple of examples: in the Hansard document containing Philip Davies's speech, his arguments are critiqued by at least 3 other MPs; if we were to include his information then per WP:NPOV and fairly representing the source, we would also need to quote them and their views. Ditto Connell: if it is okay to cite him when he makes an argument that reasonates with MRAs, then per NPOV we would need to also cite him when he does not. Surely you can see where this would lead in terms of the article and why this policy makes total sense.

I am not sure what you mean when you say "I have a problem particularly with the repeated occurrence of "Critics suggest/argue ..." etc. Because that discusses the issues not the Men's Rights Movement", but if you find any references in the "critics say" sections that discuss the "issue" outside a discussion of the MRM or MRAs, then I would 100% support removing them. I cannot guarantee every reference because I haven't checked them all, but I would be very surprised if there are many, though.

Per NPOV, there is no way that this article is going to end up as a list of men's rights issues referencing only men's rights authors. That's what men's rights websites are for. This is an encyclopedia which has as a central tenet of NPOV meaning "representing fairly, proportionately, and, as far as possible, without bias, all of the significant views that have been published by reliable sources on a topic". There are lots of critical voices about this movement and their arguments in highly reliable sources, and these have to be reflected in this article.Slp1 (talk) 12:09, 23 August 2013 (UTC)

This article comes under mens rights etc not just the movement per se so it unrealistically limiting the scope of the topic.Now presumably you have read the whole link so beyond that you have no reasonable cause to revert. Pleasetry (talk) 12:24, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

Sorry Pleasantry this article is about the movement it's not a list of issues. Unless there are reliable sources linking issues to the movement this article can't list them. That particular infor might be more pertinent to the Sentencing in England and Wales article--Cailil ^talk 12:46, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

Pleasentry's inclusion of statistics about prison sentencing was discussed and rejected before. The two edits in question are almost identical (1 and 2) and good examples of synthesis. --Sonicyouth86 (talk) 17:39, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

Why does men's rights redirect to this article if it is only for the movement and why has it been changed between men's rights and men's rights movement before so I don't think that's a good enough reason to obstruct its inclusion. Pleasetry (talk) 20:10, 5 September 2013 (UTC)

Rape section has unattributed statistic

In the Rape section, the article states "Quoting research including that by Eugene Kanin and the U.S. Air Force they assert that 40-50% or more of rape allegations may be false.[97][98][99] " However none of the links mention anything about the U.S. Air Force. There is also no U.S. Air Force study listed in the "False accusation of rape" Wikipedia article. The words "and the U.S. Air Force" should be removed from the sentence.

As well, the criticism of the Kanin study from the "False accusation of rape" Wikipedia article should be mentioned:

Critics of Kanin's report include David Lisak, an associate professor of psychology and director of the Men's Sexual Trauma Research Project at the University of Massachusetts Boston. He states, "Kanin’s 1994 article on false allegations is a provocative opinion piece, but it is not a scientific study of the issue of false reporting of rape. It certainly should never be used to assert a scientific foundation for the frequency of false allegations."[16] — Preceding unsigned comment added by Strawcow (talk • contribs) 04:49, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

Hello Strawcow. Thanks for your message. On this page we are covering the men's rights movement and their claims. If you look at the references you will see that both NCFM and Farrell references refer to a 1985 US Air Force Academy study. (I am not sure why the NCFM link doesn't work, but if you click the link and then type www before the ncmp.org you will go to the page. If anybody can figure out how to fix it that would be great.....) It doesn't matter that whether it is not mentioned on the false accusations of rape page; what matters are what the references cited here say.

You are right that these statistics are greatly disputed, and thanks for that quote. As this page is about the men's rights movement, we can't just use general references about the Kanin study (for example). WP needs criticisms of the use of these statistics by the Men's Rights Movement. Do you see the difference in focus? Having said that I am pretty sure that there are these kinds of sources out there. In fact, just after typing this, I looked for and found the the "false allegations" section (p. 162 on) by Sterba in the Farrell and Sterba book: Sterba is deeply critical of the Air Force study and Farrell's use of it - over 4 pages, and this includes the fact that the very Air Force Academy was the subject of a 2003 scandal over its longstanding failure to address rape and sexual assault, and the toleration of abuse of female cadets.[20]. So there is that source, and likely other material related to the MRM out there, that should be briefly summarized for this article. I don't have time to do this now, but perhaps others do have time to look for sources and write something up. Slp1 (talk) 12:52, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

The OR issue is obviously valid, but I don't think the concern about giving readers false or misleading information is unwarranted either. What would you think of writing "discredited research by..." and leaving the less relevant details to be discussed in the proper articles? –Roscelese (talk ⋅ contribs) 20:51, 26 August 2013 (UTC)

I don't think that there is enough of a scholarly consensus on this research to justify "discredited" in that first sentence- for example, for the Air Force academy study the only academic critic is Sterba, that I can find. - But I do agree that there are sources criticizing the MRM's points on this matter that something needs to be added. I have Sterba, and I found this too. If other editors can find other material about the men's rights movement and their claims about false rape allegations, that would be great. --Slp1 (talk) 12:22, 27 August 2013 (UTC)

There is no link to any Air Force Study. The link that now looks to be fixed is to a men's rights page that talks about a study that may or may not exist. There are no direct quotes from the article. Without citing the actual article, the "U.S. Air Force" part of the sentence should be removed. Or it should be rewritten that Men's Rights Groups claim that there is a U.S. Air Force study that proposes that 40% of rape allegations may be false. We don't know what the study says, we only know what Men's Rights websites claim the study says.

--Strawcow (talk) 15:43, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

There doesn't need to be link to the Air Force Study. Reliable sources say the study exists, and that is good enough for WP, unless there are clear reasons for believing that they are wrong and it doesn't exist. If it helps satisfy your desire to confirm that it exists though, James Sterba in the Oxford University Press Farrell/Sterba book states on p. 162 that the study is "not in the public domain" but that he got a copy of it by using the Freedom of Information Act. Slp1 (talk) 14:27, 26 August 2013 (UTC)

Paternity Fraud section should be corrected

Hiya,

Reading up on the sources for Michael Gilding, none of them mention Men's Rights activists, only Fathers' Rights activists as overestimating the incidence of misatributed paternity. Since this is an article on the Men's rights movement, the Gilding passage needs to be deleted. Since the article is edit-protected, perhaps one of the Editerati would oblige...?

T 88.89.144.233 (talk) 00:43, 29 August 2013 (UTC)

Thanks, but it seems you didn't notice that one of the references mentions the "Men's Rights Agency" as one of the complaining group. I will also add this reference which states "Men’s rights organisations, such as the Men’s Rights Agency, claim up to 30 per cent of men in Australia are living with a child they mistakenly believe is their biological offspring. In the past, the group has called for mandatory testing of all babies at birth. Gilding adamantly disputes this figure and says it is probably closer to between one and three per cent." I'd also add that some sources consider fathers' rights to be a subset of the men's rights movement. I've actually called for a clear decision here about whether we can accept references to the fathers' rights movement as well (and supported only citing refs to MR groups/activists only myself), but a consensus has never been reached. --Slp1 (talk) 01:22, 29 August 2013 (UTC)