> You can say that men benefit, as a group: privilege, higher
> wages, etc. etc. But that's too narrow, because it doesn't
> consider the ways men suffer under the current system:
> shorter life spans, higher stress levels, etc. etc.
True, but you don't even have to go there. The reality is that most men are actually hurt by sexism not only because of its culturally/psychologically warping effects, but "materially" because it serves as a linchpin of a system that oppresses most men, too.
By the same token, take racism. It's simply not correct to say that whites "benefit" from racism; most whites are, in fact, harmed by racism. Unions are much rarer in the US South than elsewhere in the country, and as a result wages and living conditions generally for most Southern whites are worse than for whites elsewhere in the country. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that this is because of the especially racist history of the South. Saying that whites do not "benefit" from racism is, however, NOT to say that whites don't have "privileges" AS whites. Racism is not just something that "divides the working class" in some way that would make everyone equally culpable; for while racism indeed harms most whites, it harms people of color a great deal more.
You can make similar points about gender, etc.
- - - - - - - - - - John Lacny http://www.johnlacny.com
Tell no lies, claim no easy victories