Toxic masculinity: I’m tired of performing all the time, says Justin Baldoni

ALSO READ | How to raise gutsy girls? Author Caroline Paul has an answer

Justin Baldoni on how he views himself from the prism of masculinity. (Designed by Gargi Singh)

All his life, he was told what kind of man he was supposed to be. As a boy, all he wanted, was to be liked and accepted by other boys, he admits. “But that acceptance meant I had to acquire this almost disgusted view of the feminine. And since we were told feminine is the opposite of masculine, I either had to reject embodying any of these qualities, or face rejection myself,” he says.

“This is wrong, this is toxic and it has to end,” Baldoni declares of the gender norms.

Baldoni says men must learn to embrace the qualities that they were told are feminine. They must be willing to stand up, to learn from the women who embody them.

ALSO READ | In the midst of death, life persists; in the midst of untruth, truth persists: Mahatma Gandhi

Hoping to start a dialogue around what masculinity really is, Baldoni ends his compelling speech by saying, “I believe that as men, it’s time we start to see past our privilege and recognise that we are not just part of the problem, fellas, we are the problem. The glass ceiling exists because we put it there. And if we want to be a part of the solution, then words are no longer enough… So women, on behalf of men all over the world, please forgive us…”