Book review of Amanda Goldrick Jones, Men Who Believe in Feminism. Westport, CT: Praegar, 2003. $64.95 hardcover

Hyde, Cheryl A.

English

ScholarWorks at WMU

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare Volume 31 Issue 3 September Article 13 September 2004 Review of Men Who Believe in Feminism. Amanda Goldrick Jones. Reviewed by Cheryl A. Hyde. Cheryl A. Hyde University of Maryland, Baltimore Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw  Part of the Gender and Sexuality Commons, and the Social Work Commons Recommended Citation Hyde, Cheryl A. (2004) "Review of Men Who Believe in Feminism. Amanda Goldrick Jones. Reviewed by Cheryl A. Hyde.," The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare: Vol. 31 : Iss. 3 , Article 13. Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw/vol31/iss3/13 This Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by the Social Work at ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact maira.bundza@wmich.edu. 176 Journal of Sociology & Social Welfareevaluation. Second, the book is Eurocentric and offers insightsonly from the more developed countries. There is so much goingon in Eastern and Central Europe, Asia and Africa that wascompletely lacking in this dialog. This was disappointing but itoffers an opportunity to expand the discussion in future projects.Finally, the studies in the book suffer from the same sampling,methodology and measurement problems that plagued muchof evaluation research to date. This includes small, conveniencesamples, no comparison groups, and lack of valid and reliablemeasures, to name just a few issues. The reader would have hopedthat this discourse would have offered innovation in any of theseissues since we have so much to learn. In summary, for anyoneinterested in evaluation research from a global perspective, thisis a good start. Even keeping in mind the limitations, there arelessons to be learned here that is worthy-of-note.Victor GrozaCase Western Reserve UniversityAmanda Goldrick Jones, Men Who Believe in Feminism. Westport,CT: Praegar, 2003. $64.95 hardcover.When I mentioned to several colleagues that I was reviewinga book on the profeminist men's movement, they made someinteresting comments-"Well, that must be a thin book," "Do wereally need to know how men learn to cry" and "You don't meanthose guys that beat drums and hug trees, do you?" If nothing else,Amanda Goldrick-Jones deserves credit for undertaking a topicthat is often met with a smirk, rolled-eyes or dismissive opinions.Fortunately, she accomplishes more than that in her clear, oftenengaging, account of the ignored and misrepresented effort ofsome men to support feminist ideals.In Men Who Believe in Feminism, Goldrick-Jones traces theemergence, activities and challenges of the key branches and or-ganizations of profeminist (also termed anti-sexist) men's move-ments in the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, and Australia. In eachcountry, these collective action efforts had their roots in the newwave of feminist activism of the 1970s. Goldrick-Jones describesthe ways in which male activists framed their causes, determinedBook Reviews 177"valid" issues, held themselves varyingly accountable to femi-nists, and addressed internecine conflicts. In the United States,these efforts reached their zenith in the 1980s; in the other coun-tries, a bit later. Currently, there is relatively little profeministmen's mobilization.What is apparent from this book, however, is that men doneed to be involved in anti-sexist organizing and education. Inher most compelling section of the book, Goldrick-Jones firstoutlines the extent of violence against women, what she terms"the female holocaust", and then conveys the work men did toboth support the efforts of feminists (mostly through fundraising)and to confront the actions of other men. Indeed, this anti-violencewing was and is the strongest of the profeminist movement.Much of the book focuses on intra-movement schisms. Inessence, there were three streams that claimed to represent "themen's movement". One focused on how men were constrained bytraditional sex roles. These activists often claimed that while somemen held societal power, most were also oppressed by patriarchy.As such, they had a relatively loose connection to feminism. Asplinter group of this wing coalesced and extended the notion ofmale oppression by claiming that women, specifically feminists,held power over men. This became the basis for the mythopoeticmovement championed by Robert Bly, the founder of the fathers'rights actions in divorce and custody issues, and more traditionalreligious efforts such as Promise Keepers. Not surprisingly, thesemen are hostile to feminists (and vice versa). Finally, a comparablysmaller cadre of men focused on challenging the gender powerand privilege held by men. For the most part, these men focusedon anti-violence, and while some of their efforts were viewedwith skepticism, there was some sense of working in concertwith feminists. This wing is the truest expression of profeministmen.As with the feminist movement, the politics of race, class andsexuality undermined the profeminist movement. Regardless ofwhich wing one focuses on, participants were overwhelminglywhite and middle-class. From the conference proceedings, maga-zines and other literature reviewed for this book, there appears tobe few attempts to engage men of color. Issues regarding sexuality,heterosexual and gay, proved even more complex. For example,178 Journal of Sociology & Social Welfaresome men attempted to defend certain types of pornographyas freedom of sexual expression, which met with considerablecondemnation from many feminist activists. And while supportfor gay rights was often forthcoming, that was substantially un-dermined when a prominent pro-feminist leader in England con-fessed that when he was 17 he had a sexual relationship with a12 year old boy. The subsequent firestorm effectively ended hisactivism, as well as his organization-the National Organizationfor Men Against Sexism.Goldrick-Jones account of the profeminist male movementis primarily descriptive, which isn't a problem, per se. Yet hadshe contexted her account within an analytical framework, suchas those provided by the extensive social movement literature,the reader would have a much more dynamic understandingof this movement's growth, development and decline. For ex-ample, sociological accounts of the feminist movement, with itscompeting ideologies, decentralized structure, and struggles withpolitical purity and cooptation, provide ideal templates for a morerigorous examination of the profeminist movement.The other main critique of this book has to do with the seem-ingly misleading focus conveyed in the title. It does provide evi-dence for the ways in which some of the profeminist campaignsand activists engaged in transgressive gender politics, but thereader is left to connect the dots. And, there is little informationabout the men who made up this movement. How, for example,were their lives altered? Were they able to challenge their owngender privilege, and if so, how? Did they create new formsof progressive masculinity? These questions are important notonly in understanding the dynamics of the movement, but alsoin comprehending the social change efforts of anyone who is com-bating their own group's power such as white people engaged inantiracism work. Yet Goldrick-Jones leaves this important aspectof transformational politics unexamined. However, it is importantto remember that the author has tackled a relatively unknowncollective engagement to address sexism. She shows that therewere men committed to ending gender injustice, and shows thatmany more are needed today.Cheryl A. HydeUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore

Review of \u3cem\u3eMen Who Believe in Feminism.\u3c/em\u3e Amanda Goldrick Jones. Reviewed by Cheryl A. Hyde.

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare 
Volume 31 
Issue 3 September Article 13 
September 2004 
Review of Men Who Believe in Feminism. Amanda Goldrick Jones. 
Reviewed by Cheryl A. Hyde. 
Cheryl A. Hyde 
University of Maryland, Baltimore 
Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw 
 Part of the Gender and Sexuality Commons, and the Social Work Commons 
Recommended Citation 
Hyde, Cheryl A. (2004) "Review of Men Who Believe in Feminism. Amanda Goldrick Jones. Reviewed by 
Cheryl A. Hyde.," The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare: Vol. 31 : Iss. 3 , Article 13. 
Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw/vol31/iss3/13 
This Book Review is brought to you by the Western 
Michigan University School of Social Work. For more 
information, please contact wmu-
scholarworks@wmich.edu. 
176 Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
evaluation. Second, the book is Eurocentric and offers insights
only from the more developed countries. There is so much going
on in Eastern and Central Europe, Asia and Africa that was
completely lacking in this dialog. This was disappointing but it
offers an opportunity to expand the discussion in future projects.
Finally, the studies in the book suffer from the same sampling,
methodology and measurement problems that plagued much
of evaluation research to date. This includes small, convenience
samples, no comparison groups, and lack of valid and reliable
measures, to name just a few issues. The reader would have hoped
that this discourse would have offered innovation in any of these
issues since we have so much to learn. In summary, for anyone
interested in evaluation research from a global perspective, this
is a good start. Even keeping in mind the limitations, there are
lessons to be learned here that is worthy-of-note.
Victor Groza
Case Western Reserve University
Amanda Goldrick Jones, Men Who Believe in Feminism. Westport,
CT: Praegar, 2003. $64.95 hardcover.
When I mentioned to several colleagues that I was reviewing
a book on the profeminist men's movement, they made some
interesting comments-"Well, that must be a thin book," "Do we
really need to know how men learn to cry" and "You don't mean
those guys that beat drums and hug trees, do you?" If nothing else,
Amanda Goldrick-Jones deserves credit for undertaking a topic
that is often met with a smirk, rolled-eyes or dismissive opinions.
Fortunately, she accomplishes more than that in her clear, often
engaging, account of the ignored and misrepresented effort of
some men to support feminist ideals.
In Men Who Believe in Feminism, Goldrick-Jones traces the
emergence, activities and challenges of the key branches and or-
ganizations of profeminist (also termed anti-sexist) men's move-
ments in the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, and Australia. In each
country, these collective action efforts had their roots in the new
wave of feminist activism of the 1970s. Goldrick-Jones describes
the ways in which male activists framed their causes, determined
Book Reviews 177
"valid" issues, held themselves varyingly accountable to femi-
nists, and addressed internecine conflicts. In the United States,
these efforts reached their zenith in the 1980s; in the other coun-
tries, a bit later. Currently, there is relatively little profeminist
men's mobilization.
What is apparent from this book, however, is that men do
need to be involved in anti-sexist organizing and education. In
her most compelling section of the book, Goldrick-Jones first
outlines the extent of violence against women, what she terms
"the female holocaust", and then conveys the work men did to
both support the efforts of feminists (mostly through fundraising)
and to confront the actions of other men. Indeed, this anti-violence
wing was and is the strongest of the profeminist movement.
Much of the book focuses on intra-movement schisms. In
essence, there were three streams that claimed to represent "the
men's movement". One focused on how men were constrained by
traditional sex roles. These activists often claimed that while some
men held societal power, most were also oppressed by patriarchy.
As such, they had a relatively loose connection to feminism. A
splinter group of this wing coalesced and extended the notion of
male oppression by claiming that women, specifically feminists,
held power over men. This became the basis for the mythopoetic
movement championed by Robert Bly, the founder of the fathers'
rights actions in divorce and custody issues, and more traditional
religious efforts such as Promise Keepers. Not surprisingly, these
men are hostile to feminists (and vice versa). Finally, a comparably
smaller cadre of men focused on challenging the gender power
and privilege held by men. For the most part, these men focused
on anti-violence, and while some of their efforts were viewed
with skepticism, there was some sense of working in concert
with feminists. This wing is the truest expression of profeminist
men.
As with the feminist movement, the politics of race, class and
sexuality undermined the profeminist movement. Regardless of
which wing one focuses on, participants were overwhelmingly
white and middle-class. From the conference proceedings, maga-
zines and other literature reviewed for this book, there appears to
be few attempts to engage men of color. Issues regarding sexuality,
heterosexual and gay, proved even more complex. For example,
178 Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
some men attempted to defend certain types of pornography
as freedom of sexual expression, which met with considerable
condemnation from many feminist activists. And while support
for gay rights was often forthcoming, that was substantially un-
dermined when a prominent pro-feminist leader in England con-
fessed that when he was 17 he had a sexual relationship with a
12 year old boy. The subsequent firestorm effectively ended his
activism, as well as his organization-the National Organization
for Men Against Sexism.
Goldrick-Jones account of the profeminist male movement
is primarily descriptive, which isn't a problem, per se. Yet had
she contexted her account within an analytical framework, such
as those provided by the extensive social movement literature,
the reader would have a much more dynamic understanding
of this movement's growth, development and decline. For ex-
ample, sociological accounts of the feminist movement, with its
competing ideologies, decentralized structure, and struggles with
political purity and cooptation, provide ideal templates for a more
rigorous examination of the profeminist movement.
The other main critique of this book has to do with the seem-
ingly misleading focus conveyed in the title. It does provide evi-
dence for the ways in which some of the profeminist campaigns
and activists engaged in transgressive gender politics, but the
reader is left to connect the dots. And, there is little information
about the men who made up this movement. How, for example,
were their lives altered? Were they able to challenge their own
gender privilege, and if so, how? Did they create new forms
of progressive masculinity? These questions are important not
only in understanding the dynamics of the movement, but also
in comprehending the social change efforts of anyone who is com-
bating their own group's power such as white people engaged in
antiracism work. Yet Goldrick-Jones leaves this important aspect
of transformational politics unexamined. However, it is important
to remember that the author has tackled a relatively unknown
collective engagement to address sexism. She shows that there
were men committed to ending gender injustice, and shows that
many more are needed today.
Cheryl A. Hyde
University of Maryland, Baltimore


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Review of \u3cem\u3eMen Who Believe in Feminism.\u3c/em\u3e Amanda Goldrick Jones. Reviewed by Cheryl A. Hyde.

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