A Step Backward for Women

The other day I read that a new fashion magazine for women launched, this new magazine is geared toward modest fashion and features models wearing long sleeved tops and long skirts.

Excuse me, but this doesn’t seem very fashion foward to me. It reeks of oppressive anti feminism.

On the Web Eliza: http://www.elizamagazine.com/

Then I saw this article, which coincidently came at the same time my friend introduced to the term “Menergy.” Menergy is anti metrosexual, it’s what a man’s man exudes.

Um, okay but then I read the article below about how women need to get back in the kitchen and I thought to myself what is going on in our society…

From The NY Daily News:

What makes a man a man BY DOLORES PRIDA

A machismo makeover conspiracy is afoot.

An overt salvo was fired last year with the publication of an article titled “In Search of Machismo” in Latina magazine.

The author, Conchita Cortez, bemoaned the fact that too many Latinos were becoming softies and that women had just about had it with men who plucked their eyebrows and had better complexions than them.

The so-called “metrosexuals” were becoming a bore and women were ready to welcome back a “new machismo.”

The latest effort to rehabilitate this much-maligned male behavior, is the book “Huevos y la Mujer Latina: The De-masculinization of the Macho” (Floricanto Press, $19.95) by Julián Camacho Segura.

It’s the kind of book that makes you scream, “Why am I reading this?” every few pages. This Macho Camacho calls for women to get back into the kitchen so men can watch Sunday night football with their amigos then go out to drink and chase other women.

He blames white women for the current state of affairs — including the “abominable” sexual harassment laws — and decries that young Latinas have followed suit and become too independent and assertive.

This “emasculation” is responsible, along with racism, for the enormous high school dropout rate of young Latino males. Men must get back in touch with their huevos to make the world right again, he concludes.

For him the world began to crumble one evening in the late 1970s when, as a 10-year-old kid, he watched an episode of “Charlie’s Angels” in which one of the Angels, wearing high heels, kicked a man.

“Even if they were criminals, I could not tolerate visually these women assaulting the male species,” he writes.

It makes you wonder why, in our culture, men do not fear being gored by a bull at the plaza de toros, but tremble at the mere thought of being kicked in the groin by a woman wearing stilettos.

This poorly written Huevos monologue could easily be dismissed as a tirade born of too-many-Tecates if it weren’t for Floricanto Press issuing it as part of its La Mujer Latina Series. What were they thinking?

Are Latinas being bamboozled back to the old ways, to aid and abet in the preservation and protection of the fragile macho ego? To feel guilty about their success?

Perhaps the confusion is all a matter of semantics. Huevos means eggs. A fragile metaphor, indeed. It is a mystery why men use it at all to refer to the perceived repository of their manliness.

“Macho man” is just the theme of a tacky song. Cojones is really the equivalent of chutzpah. And there’s nothing good about machismo, whether “new” or old. It’s unadulterated male chauvinism and it has nothing to do with masculinity.

In Spanish we have another word that is just right: hombría. It means not just manliness but also courage, integrity, honesty and uprightness.

To have hombría, to be un verdadero hombre, is the best compliment a man can receive. Un verdadero hombre is a true hero who overcomes adversity and always does that right thing.

And that’s what young Latinos should be taught:

That it takes hombría to finish high school.
That un verdadero hombre doesn’t impregnate and run,
but is a real father to the children he brings into the world.
That un verdadero hombre is sensitive
but emotionally strong and
his masculinity is not threatened by cooking and
helping with the dishes.

That’s what women want. As for huevos, they know they gotta break some to make an omelet … preferably while wearing tacones.

Spread the love

More Articles for You

How DNA, Haplogroups, and Genetic Markers Reveal Taíno Heritage

The Genetic Echoes of the Taíno People The Taíno people, the first known inhabitants of the Caribbean, have long been …

Spread the love

Unearthing the Invisible in Ben Brisbois’ Banana Capital: Unpeeling the Layers of Capitalism and Racism

The banana. Simple, ubiquitous, and unassuming. Yet, as Ben Brisbois reveals in his forthcoming Banana Capital, it’s anything but ordinary. …

Spread the love

Ditching The Algorithm: Why I Joined Bluesky (And You Should Too)

For years, social media has been both a megaphone and an equalizer, a place where anyone can share art, advocate …

Spread the love

Latina/o Bloggers, Content Creators, Influencers: This Is Your Year

The Latina/o Bloggers Group is back and ready to uplift you. Join the community to tap into resources, connect with like-minded creators, and be part of something bigger than just a platform. Let’s rewrite the digital narrative together.

Spread the love

Nosferatu Reimagined: Mythology, Symbolism, & Storytelling in the Digital Age

When F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu first graced the silver screen in 1922, it set the stage for a century of fascination …

Spread the love

What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About Death, Technology, and Social Change

In a world where technology seems to dominate every facet of our lives, there’s something profoundly humbling about turning back …

Spread the love