Kelley wrote:
>
> why do you suppose it is that critiques of gender privilege are NOT read as
> demands for men to feel guilty about the fact that they happened to be born
> men?
>
>
Partly because guilt is feminized. I'm not saying men don't feel guilty ever, just that women are expected to feel more guilty, and accordingly, do.
Speaking of guilt, it is really a serious problem for the left - I've noticed that more often than not, people react to a leftist analysis by feeling guilty. Mention something bad a company is doing and most people's visceral impulse is to feel bad that they buy its products. Mention a leftist magazine and many people will say they feel bad they never read it, or that when they do read it, it makes them feel guilty. I'm convinced this is very, very unhelpful. Maybe a few people are moved to act by shame, but I think most people shy away from it. People would rather feel powerful than guilty. The Christian Right does a very good job of telling people: "you can make a difference." (I'm not saying there's no guilt involved there, anxiety about going to hell, etc. just that it's often countered, or balanced by this very exuberant message that what you do really matters.)
Liza