Schools is supposed to feel like home, a safe place with people you can trust. However, we quickly realize as we grow older that this is not true as violence and sexual assaults often happens during school days. In fact, school is the opposite of a safe place for some students, they feel scared and alone to the point where they have to look out for their own safety because they know that the school does not provide enough protection. And when students finally talk to the school about their situations, the school takes it lightly and often times it is ignored.

First of all, we have this misconception that to be a man a person must follow certain characteristics. Kids learns this at an early age through their father’s way of doing things and applies it to their daily life. One of the misconception is that violence is often the single most evident markers of manhood (Kimmel 148). Without any context of Jaden and the bully’s relationship, we can assume that they had a conflict and the only way to solve it is through violence. Our society has normalized this idea of solving a problem through violence because talking it out and expressing their emotions is considered to be feminine and would destroy their manly image in school (Kimmel 2). This case is not uncommon, the CBC stated that 41% of boys have been physically assaulted. This shows that the stereotypical concept of man is still very present in our generation. Although violence has no place in our world, boys have no other choice but to apply violence in school to assert their dominance and prove their manliness because they believe that it is a necessary process to become a man.

Secondly, boys are not the only victim in school, girls often receive worst assaults. This is due to the fact that boys believe that they are superior to girls and as a result they view them as a toy and play and touch them whenever they want without consent. In addition, because to be a man is to not be a woman and being strong is attributed to man, boys believe that girls are weak therefore they think that doing stuff to them wouldnt have any consequence. Men gain status and achievement in many things they do such as sports, work and notably sexual conquest (Kilmartin 3). However, if they fail to seduce a girl they will bring another stereotypical trait a man has to achieve their sexual needs. Force and dominance is used to achieve it (Kilmartin 2). As proof, in the CBC video, a boy sexually assaulted a 9 year-old girl in the bus. This proves that the stereotypical concept of man not only harms men but also women.

Thirdly, I believe that these assaults are preventable to some extent. Schools should be able to control their students behaviour by fortifying their rules and adding cameras or employees to places such as buses in order to provide protection to students. The school’s main objective and concern is supposed to be their students however, in the CBC video it shows us that money and reputation is more important. As proof, letters were sent to multiple schools demanding for datas on school violence, schools demanded for high amount of money and others denied the request because it could potentially ruin their reputation. Not only is this morally wrong but it also motivates bullies to continue doing harm to others because they recognize the school’s inability to act and respond to violence.

In conclusion, the way we’ve been taught on how to become a man is poisoning the children into believing that violence and superiority is mandatory to be manly. Not only is it harming young boys but the girls are also affected by it because of certain traits a man has such as force and dominance. To prevent such thing from happening in the future generations, we must change the way we portray a man and encourage them to express their feelings without feeling feminine.

Work Cited

CBC News, CBC/Radio Canada, gem.cbc.ca/media/marketplace/season-47/episode-4/38e815a-011d8f47088

Kimmel, Michael. Masculinity as Homophobia. 1994.

Kimmel, Michael. “Masculinity.” International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Ed. William A. Darity, Jr. 2nd ed. Vol. 5. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008. 1-5. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 9 June 2014. 1-5. Print.

Kilmartin, Christopher, and Andrew P. Smiler. “Defining Men’s Studies.” The Masculine Self, Cornwall On Hudson, NY, Sloan Publishing, 2019, pp. 1–7

As far back as I can remember, violence has always been part of our lives. For most of us, it started at school. In fact, we, definitely, all have witnessed someone get bullied or two boys fighting in the schoolyard. Yet, sometimes, it is not just a fight. Irreversible actions can occur, and it is only afterward that we realize the gravity of the situation. Once, a 14-year-old student at Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School, in Hamilton, got stabbed and unfortunately, he died from his injuries. After this kind of incident, we inevitably question the safety of schools. The CBC, alarmed by this incident, did an independent investigation about the issue of violence in Canadian schools and discovered, using a survey, some surprising information and statistics about students.

The CBC first learn that violence between students is not limited to a simple fight. They also face serious types of crimes such as threat with a weapon, hate crime, robbery, extortion, along with physical and sexual assault and more. Yet, the most shocking are the results: “41 per cent of boys say they were physically assaulted at high school.” The fact that there are at least 2 in 5 boys who already have been assaulted demonstrates that there is a serious problem regarding students’ safety. The worst part is that violence is not only limited to that: “26 per cent of girls say they experienced unwanted sexual contact at school and one in four students first experienced sexual harassment or assault before Grade 7.” That being said, we can deduce that schools lack policies to help. In fact, the schools receive several complaints, but it seems like they don’t have the right aid policies for the students. For example, three girls from the school investigated by CBC have been assaulted by the same boy. They complained but the boy got readmitted to school a few days later as if nothing had happened. That proves that schools don’t know how to respond adequately to those type of issues. One of the girls even said that they seem annoyed by this issue. This leads students to remain silent. In fact, “nearly 50 per cent of high school kids don’t report violence they’ve experienced or witnessed.” The students know that the school won’t take any concrete action. At the end, we understand that schools prefer to preserve their reputation rather than releasing critical information about them.

Institutions accomplish the creation of gender difference and the reproduction of gender order through several gendered processes.

Michal Kimmel

Furthermore, the CBC found proof that Canadian students experience from an early age gender-based violence. It tends to focus on bullying for boys and sexual harassment and assault for girls. We understand very quickly that the environment in which young people find themselves greatly affecting their behavior, especially boys, since our society enforce gender differences. Indeed, according to what Michael Kimmel says on page 3 of the text “Masculinity”, “Institutions accomplish the creation of gender difference and the reproduction of gender order through several gendered processes.” We, therefore, understand that some institutions such as schools, workplaces and homes, favor some groups of people over other.

At school, it is a bit different. The male gender tends to be the most affected by gender-based differences since young boys are forced from their young to behave like a “man”. Therefore, by telling a boy to conduct like a “man”, he is asked to reject all female behavior and to realise that if he is not acting like a “man”, he will be rejected by the others. This leads most men to use violence to show their masculinity since for many, violence is equal to masculinity. Indeed, “Violence is often the single most evident marker of manhood” (148), according to Kimmel on the article “Masculinity as Homophobia”. That is why men have tendency to fight and use their strength to resolve their problems. For example, Hockey illustrates perfectly the way men demonstrates their masculinity. They use their fists when it is necessary to settle a misunderstanding just like the students are ready to fight when they get irritated

Moreover, according to the last definition of masculinity proposed by Brannon and David in the text “Defining Men’s Studies”, “Masculinity is characterized by a willingness to take (physical) ricks and become violent if necessary” (6). This explains why there is so much violence in educational establishments. Unwittingly, violence plays a big role in a boy’s life. The society thinks that it is normal for a boy to be violent or aggressive. By trivializing the violent behavior of boys, schools have also banalized violence. Fights are, therefore, not taken seriously. Violence in school is a serious issue and it should be taken much more seriously. All schools should acknowledge it and act accordingly.

Works Cited

CBC News, CBC/Radio Canada, gem.cbc.ca/media/marketplace/season-47/episode-4/38e815a-011d8f47088

McGuire, Jennifer. “Why CBC Started Looking into Violence in Schools | CBC News.” CBC news, CBC/Radio Canada, 8 Nov. 2019, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence- editors-note-1.5331402

Kilmartin, Christopher, and Andrew P. Smiler. “Defining Men’s Studies.” The Masculine Self, Cornwall On Hudson, NY, Sloan Publishing, 2019, pp. 1–7

Kimmel, Michael. Masculinity as Homophobia. 1994.

Kimmel, Michael. “Masculinity.” International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Ed. William A. Darity, Jr. 2nd ed. Vol. 5. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008. 1-5. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 9 June 2014. 1-5. Print.

Many people wonder what is going on behind the scene during a hockey game. We tend to assume that players just play the game and go home afterwards. However, many news reports covey the idea that being a hockey player isn’t just like any other typical job, but a job that can have positive and negative consequences that will potentially affect their life and relationships. 

If we were to picture a hockey player, we would automatically picture them tall, good looking and muscular. We would also describe them as someone who is aggressive because of all the fights we see during games. As audiences, we can sense that hockey is portrayed differently than any other sport because fighting, pushing, and giving each other concussions are encouraged during games. We would also see that some referees won’t even stop the fights players started. Therefore, it makes us wonder if players are taken cared of during hockey season and off season. In the CBC news website, a report was talking about how hockey players are intoxicated by the “hockey culture”.  As we all know by now, toxic masculinity is a systemic issue that has to be put in order. Just like Kilmartin explained in his article called “Defining Men’s Studies”, hockey has a “manbox” that players should follow to be successful. He stated “males are encouraged from early age to avoid behaviors, interests, and personality traits that are considered “feminine” (5). We can compare this with hockey players because if they are seen as a sissy they are most likely not to make the team because they won’t fit in with the group. For example, Wade Belak, an NHL enforcer who played 14 seasons in NHL was fighting with other players because it was part of the game. He said “he didn’t love it, but he was fine with it [because] he wanted to stay within the NHL and have his career” (Smart & Ellenwoord). This goes to show that players are forced to do things that are not in there liking to stay playing hockey. Furthermore, although there is a lot of proofs that violence is very present during hockey games, senior vice president of NHL Gary Bettman won’t even recognize it as something serious because fighting on ice is something that fans want to see often during games ; and those fights bring money to their wallet. Hockey has obviously became a business rather than a passion. Therefore, if hockey players bring more rates and money to their pockets, why should Bettman stop players from fighting each other if that’s what intrigues fans the most? This toxic business affects players self-worth. The article “Men at Work: Jobs, Careers, and Masculinity” by Kilmartin it says, “masculine socialization shapes behavoir, but ongoing social contingencies maintain it” (233). He then goes on by stating society made that wealth is what defines your worth and value in this world (233). We can parallel this with the careers of NHL players. Like I said above, if fighting is what makes hockey players famous and grow the NHL business, they will be more accepted in the league and hockey culture. In short, hockey players use violence to grow in the business because that is what makes them be and feel part of the NHL business. 

To continue, because of the fighting and concussions, hockey players experienced some negative consequences that affected their family’s life and theirs. Many of the players have severe concussions that caused them to have CTE. Players like Todd Ewen, Daniel Carcillo, Wade Belak and many more have suffered from CTE. Moreover, although they only knew recently that they had CTE, CTE is the reason why NHL players are suffering with their identity and role in their relationships. For example, Daniel Carcillo, he began to change personality and become more aggressive towards his wife and kids because of CTE (Smart & Ellenwoord). His wife said that he would come home and not talk about his day or anything (Smart & Ellenwoord). Despite not knowing the cause of it all, men tend to not talk about their emotions because it isn’t “manly”. In the article “Men at Work: Jobs, Careers, and Masculinity” by Kilmartin, it is stated that men didn’t learn how to deal with emotional problems and how to talk about it with someone. They tend to keep it all in their head. Men also have been “raised to ignore emotion” when it comes to being vulnerable (Kilmartin). This means that men will try to deal with problems alone even though it concerns their partners and kids. Furthermore, even if men try to be emotional, society will criticize them because it isn’t “normal”. Based on the article by Kilmartin “Defining Men’s Studies”, he says that because society portray men as strong and independent human beings, we assume that they can control and solve any problems themselves (5). However that’s obviously not true. For example, Wade Belak, he had many personal problems that he thought he could’ve solved alone but ended his life because it was too much to handle. This goes to show that because of the society defines how men should be, men who needs help won’t ask for it because of the toxic masculinity. In short, hockey culture is a toxic culture that needs to help hockey players that has CTE rather than turning the other cheek because they aren’t “man enough” to solve their personal problems. 

In conclusion, men have been put through in a lot of pressure to fit in society. Hockey is just one of many example of how toxic masculinity is very present in our society. We tend to assume that everything will go well because men are strong and independent. But that is not true because like I have mentioned above, many men want to reach out for help but could not because they are scared of being seen as too sissy or too feminine. We need to change our way of thinking and let men be vulnerable so we can end this toxic culture. 

School violence is one of the least discussed  topics that needs to be talked about more. Not just bullying in schools. When a fight happens, people pull out their phone and record it. Doesn’t matter if it is an uneven or fair fight, people just light things up. To figure why these fights happen is by the cause in the beginning. For most, the boys fight by being bullied. All types of bullying which is physical, cyber, verbal, and social. People criticized the small details of people to make them feel better or feel more powerful. This will change lots of people. People who have been bullied have changed the way they are because The “Cooler” group don’t like it or be more manly.Kimmel have written about that whitin Masculinity as Homophobia. It is weird that the strong survive. Then one day, they’re forced to fight, surrounded by people and cameras, and it’s unfair. Then, think why nobody helps me and why the school is not showing this problem. At the end of it all, you can’t tell or ask for help just be a man. The CBC Marketplace tells that 41 percent of teenage boys have been assaulted in high school by a survey. These boys also feel fear of going to school because of the thought of danger. 

26 percent of girls have experienced unwanted sexual contact in their students years and a quarter of them have their first experience in Grade 7.Also by the same survey. Which is a huge problem of safety and security. In episode 4 of Man Enough, it shows that people are terrified to experience this form of act. When they ask for help, they’re ignored and put down for even saying their experience. People don’t believe these horrible stories that occurred in people’s lives. Not only do we need to start believing and helping one another, we need to find ways to stop these acts. We need to make sure that both male and female are affected by this. What is worse than ignoring is bringing back the attacker of the victim to the same atmosphere or area space. No punishment towards their action. It is important not to repeat or be encouraged by these actions. When these happen it causes tension between races too.

Being in a different color skin somehow gives people tension towards them. Make them dangerous just by skin color but if we act like them. Formal, classics, and dressing suitable people lower their standards. Brent Staples wrote about Black men and Public spaces that “the White” give tension towards black men. Reading it gives you psychopath vibes of it, feeling what people think of black men. What a black got to do is change their taste of music, chotes, style, and especially their tone. To view as an “approachable” person. There are related topics like “The skin I’m in” Where a black man has been taken down in front of his family because the cop thought he looked similar to a criminal.  While he doesn’t look at all. Digging deeper  into race, there’s a chapter(13) that Kwan Laford talks about race in terms of masculinity. That talks about the core of it. The whiteness what people want and Canada if you are into that. 

Hockey has also had their fair share of violence which follows the common Hockey rule “The Code” This is a tradition in a hockey game where the player has to fight if they don’t it can lead to lethal injuries. You can help teammates but if it’s a rematch then you can’t stop the fight. Taking down your opponent is the only way to get out, win, or lose for the fight to be handled by the referees. There’s Penalties place for fights but never applied  them in Hockey.There’s no any sorts of gains when there is a fight but so called honor. Now, it is a part of the game.The CBC: The Fifth Estate “The Code” which was hosted by Bob Mckeown that talks about Hockey and it’s violence. It shows that there are players who don’t even play Hockey but know how to fight. How children are picking up these violence, the death of Donald Sanderson, and no one expected to fight in hockey. There is no point in fights, or any course of violence when it comes to Hockey, school or anywhere else. If you want violence then go watch fighting sports. Doing sports has been more aggressive, and these fights shows who goes on top by fighting, not by being the better player. Just like how people try to achieve in fights in schools. Especially for white men who feel powerless to prove something or to gain. Which Kimmel explained on Masculinity as Homophobia. 

Why do men fight in Hockey and what honor they speak off? Hockey is a man’s game, you don’t see many women play this or play with aggressiveness. Men are celebrated by their achievements especially through sports. People who won fights in Hockey actually gain fame for winning the fights or in multiple. Their status and achievements. Being inexpressive and independent, men are taught to be strong, sturdy, and invincible but, people who fight repeatedly don’t last long in the season or their careers because they think they can handle this lifestyle of hockey. Then, when they realized that it’s only getting worse. Aggressiveness and adventurousness is what it means for fights like these. To be able to take physical risks when it comes to fights. Almost every fight in hockey, there’ll be a hand injury and least from that is the head injury. A concussion is an injury to the head that makes the brain able to not function. Which is common to blow to the head and guess what? That’s the only area where the players hit in these fights. These are the risks that the players want to take. Kilmartin explains the full 4 explanations of Anti-femalnity, Status and Achievement, Inexpressiveness and independence, and Adventurous and aggressiveness about masculinity. 

Reference

Jennifer McGuire CBC News ”Why CBC started looking into violence in school”  on October 2019 (1.5331402) or CBC Marketplace S47 E4 “ School Violence: How to fight for safer schools” 

Danielle Kwan Leford “Racialized Masculinities Canada” Chapter 13 

The Code host by Bob Mcleown – March 2010 The Fifth Estate https://www.cbc.ca/fifth/episodes/2009-2010/the-code

Micheal. S. Kimmel (Masculinity as homophobia ch.10) (Masculinity ch.1) 

Kilmartin (Defining Men’s Studies) Chapter 1

Throughout the years the consequences of fighting in NHL hockey and the true severity of recurrent head trauma have started coming to light. We saw this in two assigned documentaries done by the fifth estate, “The Code” and “Wives reveal”. “The Code” was basically an introduction to the main issues, and the “Wives reveal” was a slightly more in depth look into NGL related deaths and the families experience. It has also come to light that often the players who are responsible for fighting don’t really understand what they’re getting into. These men are also only hired to fight. We also saw a huge internal struggle within the NHL itself, with many people for fighting in hockey and of course the people who were against it. But with the staggering number of serious head trauma and the later repercussions, it’s a wonder why fighting in hockey hasn’t been completely banned all together. Especially considering it has been linked to a number of deaths, including both on the ice and suicide. Personally I picked up on aspects very old school and unhealthy ideas of masculinity in this situation.

Enforcers, tough guys, heavy weights, goons. These are the men expected to fight in the NHL. According to one of the hockey reporters from the documentary “The Code” there are 60 NHL jobs reserved for enforcers, and while they’re definitely physically gifted and athletes in general, they’re not technically hockey players by trade, according to one of the reporters interviewed in “The Code”. Or sometimes they accept those positions in the league because they know it’s the only way for them to get into and stay in the NHL. This continuous fighting for so many of these players have resulted in multiple sever concussions. Shockingly enough most of which are undocumented, as was the case with former enforcer Wade Belak . Injuries such as these can lead to other more serious issues. The most common and the biggest issue being CTE; Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, which is caused by recurrent head trauma, such as the concussions many NHL players suffer from. It results in symptoms such as mental health issues (anxiety, depression, memory loss, bursts of confusion) substance abuse and even suicide which was sadly the case with Wade Belak (pictured below)

But where do those ideas of old school masculinity come in though as mentioned beforehand? I for one saw a lot of it when they further discussed the effects of CTE in the “Wives Reveal” documentary by The Fifth Estate. There is and has always been a stigma around mental health in general. However there’s an incredibly huge stigma around mental health in men because its seen as weak, soft and not at all masculine. Which heavily ties into the ideas of toxic masculinity because it all about being seen as strong, independent, and stoic, with common ideas such as the bro code, and that athleticism is very important, which is why a lot of athletes suffer from being put into the “max box”. Which was further discussed in the documentaries we watched in class and class discussions. Because the main symptoms of CTE are mental health issues it’s no wonder nobody wants to officially dress it even when it’s (unofficially) leading to a rising number of deaths in NHL players. The players obviously dont want to be seen as weak, and with the sport being such a huge industry the people behind everything dont want to let on the players are having difficulties for fear of loosing money.

On that note, money and the economic part of the NHL bring a whole other aspect of toxic masculinity into the argument, and really engrains it in all parts of the industry instead of just with the players. Earlier in the semester our class watched another documentary called “The Mask you Live in” there was a lot of in depth explanation as to what toxic masculinity is and what it entails. This documentary touched slightly on economics, and was mentioned again during our in class discussions. Masculinity is often attached to financial success which ties the industry further into the issue and gives us another reason to say the big time wealthy NHL hockey players are victimes of the “man box”.

I think another big part of the ideas of masculinity probably comes in the form of “I am big strong man I must fight to prove it” thought process. Which definitely involves fear to some degree and definitely stress which is doubly awful on top the possible mental illness already caused by CTE. According to former enforcer Nick Cypryos he and fellow enforcers alike always experienced a pregame feeling of dread knowing the predicament they’d probably be put in at some point on the ice, even going as far as to say ” you’re fighting for your life a lot of the time.” Hearing Cypryos talk in the Fifth Estate’s “The Code” was eye to opening to the truly damaging about of stress the players are under a lot of the time. Not to mention the fights themselves, Cypryos himself lost his career to injuries sustained from a fight. In other more serious cases such as with Don Sanderson, who died on the ice.

Fighting makes hockey Stereotypically more masculine “Without fighting you just have figure skating on ice” says one of the minor league players. This is another area we can tie into the general theme of masculinity because figure skating is (typically) very feminine and here there’s obviously a need to pull away from that. On top of everything else it seems one of the up and coming issues of fighting in hockey is that it’s becoming a legacy. Despite proof of long term negative effects fighting is becoming a major issue in the minor leagues. Even in children’s games too as seen here in the YouTube video titled “Police Investigating Youth Hockey Brawl” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxNTOqowq3w. Or of course the fight that made national news in 2007, “Ice Hockey – 8 yrs old fighting brawl ice hockey Ontario.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhZ_PC0CLec. Where teams aged only 8 years old got into a huge fight. They’re taught they need to be strong and violent and stereotypically masculine, this (seen in the videos above) starts at a very young age. Which was an idea also discussed in one of the first readings we had to do in our class “Lovers and Fighters” a memoire written by Carlos Gomez detailing his (near) life long struggle dealing with his idea of his own masculinity.

Unfortunately, despite all of these issues most fans and people within the industry don’t want fighting taken out of hockey. According to former player and then reporter Don Cherry, 70% of people involved are pro fighting. Nick Cypryos himself said that it although it needs to be regulated more it shouldn’t be completely taken out. Personally I think that if the NHL can take responsibility for the impact it has on the players and make sure they know what they’re getting into and have a much better way to regulate fighting they should be free to do whatever they want.

“41 percent of boys say they were physically assaulted at high school; 26 percent of girls say they experienced unwanted sexual contact at school; and one in four students first experienced sexual harassment or assault before Grade 7” (CBC Oct 24)

This is an era in which data speaks. Sophisticated statistical methods and powerful computers can accurately calculate facts with large data streams in a short time, and this data is shocking…

Violence on campus has always been a topic, and we can see this topic anywhere and anytime. School is a place that provides students with knowledge, allows students to find groups, progress together, play together and make friends. Why is it a hell for some students? This is a very serious and rigorous topic. It’s not a kid’s childhood, but a serious and harsh violence. ”Jayden was rushed to hospital in critical condition and spent months recovering from a fractured skull, a brain bleed and hearing damage. His attackers were expelled, charged and ultimately convicted of assault. ” ( CBC Oct 24 ) It’s hard to imagine a student, a minor child will do such cruel behavior, but through statistics, campus violence is very common in today’s society “more than one-third of students between the ages of 14 and 21 say they were physically assaulted at least once before reaching high school.”There is a reason for everything.

Winner takes all, loser takes nothing, humans are also a kind of social animals, and males in social animals show their strength and establish prestige through violence, and humans will do the same, “Violence if often the single most evident marker of manhood”. (Kimmel 148) This is a simple and rude method used by men to show themselves. It is usually too good to show their violence in school to tell other students their abilities and make them worship and fear, and when they find that they are good The effect will become excessive and will eventually lead to bullying and tragedies, and this is one of the masculinity.  The boys have their own set of ways of handling and getting along. Under the masculinity, justice and help can hardly be reasonably extended “More than one-third of children who said they experienced violence in elementary/middle school did not report any of the incidents. In high school, nearly half chose not to report an incident.” ( CBC Oct 24 ) They are afraid of the authority of the perpetrators, and they are also afraid of being labeled as a whistleblower by the group and being isolated by the group, which is a terrible thing.

School violence has long been a familiar word. We can hear it everywhere, but school violence still exists in almost every school. Setting up a help center in the school can really help the victims of school violence to a great extent, but People never know that something needs to be solved fundamentally, Some people are willing to enter these concepts and use their physical strength to show their ability, while some people do not like it, and those who do not like it can only wear masks and live under these concepts in order not to be isolated. Any male who fails to qualify in any of these ways may at least consider himself unworthy, incomplete, and inferior. (Kimmel 2014 p.03).

By setting up a humanities lesson at the age of junior high school and educating on the topic of Masculinity, I believe that these boys can be taught to a large extent why they have relevant actions, and understand the consequences of such actions, thereby Curb school violence

Works Cited

Kimmel, M. Masculinity. 1987

McGuire, Jennifer. “Why CBC Started Looking into Violence in Schools | CBC News.” CBC news, CBC/Radio Canada, 8 Nov. 2019, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence- editors-note-1.5331402

Common, David, et al. “‘I Thought He Was Dead’: CBC Survey Reveals 4 in 10 Boys Are Physically Assaulted at School | CBC News.” CBC news, CBC/Radio Canada, 8 Nov. 2019, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence-marketplace-1.5224865.

Hockey is a “badass” sport full muscular, competitive, aggressive, tough and hard men. It is a prime example of a sport that shapes men to suit the stereotype of what it means to be a “man”. They are encouraged to be ruthless and brutal on the ice, increasing unnecessary use of violence to satisfy their ego. This unhealthy and arguably a morally wrong way to approach the sport. Several good hardworking men’s career ended because of permanent physical or psychological injuries preventing them from either enjoying the game or playing again.

I understand how men are influenced to inherit these bad behaviors. Growing up my parents signed me up for many sports but were more serious about my involvement in hockey. Being in that sport there are certain expectations from the coaches and parents. I was not a very aggressive person when I was younger and had a hard time adopting violent characteristics but it was crucial for dominating the game.  Channeling these characteristics into winning the game without using excessive force or aggression is fine but there’s a certain line that is easy to cross and players often due. Because I didn’t have a lot to lose or a lot to win it was rare for my peers and me to have games that got out of hand or were harmful. However at a certain age and a certain level of skill the game becomes meaner for a lack of better words. Players stop wearing face grills that protect the entire face and are allowed to fight. I can personally say that those grills have saved my beauty and teeth to many times to count. Removing the grill is an unnecessary risk that doesn’t even improve a players performance yet almost every player does it at a certain level or age in order boost or protect their ego. When I was playing it was strictly forbidden to fight to the point where the coaches were disappointed in the players that did. For some reason it is encouraged at a professional level and the consequences were scarring for a lot of people.

A lot of the violence in hockey is televised because that is what most viewers find entertaining and gets hockey more popularity. There are documentaries and videos about how cool many hockey players are because of how tough they are. Up until recently there hasn’t been controversy towards the way the game is played and so for a long time you just had these big guys kicking each other’s asses getting hurt and hurting others on the ice. A good majority of hockey viewers are young and thus being programmed to think that this is an acceptable way to play hockey or that this is how it should be played. Younger men are already exposed to a society that encourages them to behave this way and the more involved an individual is in hockey the more likely they are to behave this way and are now encouraging other young boys, who aren’t necessarily acquainted with hockey, to be the same. This a big conflict because now you have kids who are getting into fights at school, bully or are bullied and feeling self-conscious about themselves. A survey conducted by academics, have statistics showing that 41% of boys are physically assaulted.

Lastly, it is important for us to properly shape future generations. Promoting healthy behaviors and life choices reduces the amount of damage being done to children’s mental health and alters how they will turn out when they’re older and influence each other to make better decisions. Everyone involved in hockey need to set a good example for the youth and those with a false conception of what it means to be a man. Using different language of motivating people is an example of a change that can be made; instead of saying “you play like a sissy” you could say “try not to be so afraid” or “sometimes it’s better to take the risk then to cower” encouraging to improve rather them feel bad about it. Fighting on the ice should have been forbidden long ago. Fighting is unnecessary in this sport except for extremely rare circumstances. It’s the only team sport that is ok with fighting despite the weak justifications. The safety of the players is just as important if not more important than winning the game.

In conclusion, there needs to be better control over the amount of violence that happens in hockey. Changes should be made so that the players are safer and can enjoy the sport for what it truly is. You can still have a very fun and competitive game without all the violence and male stereotypes. Changing the rules and perspective of the game will also influence a healthy view for young boys making the game safer for them and less shameful. This is effective to them on the ice and off it.

Who would have thought that school, which was meant to be a place to educate elementary, high school and college students, would also double as a place where violence is surrounding them constantly? Students, whether it be boys or girls, face the issue of gender-based violence.

The CBC team at Marketplace investigated schools on the issue of students harming other students. As a result, schools were not cooperating unless they gave them fees, worried about students’ privacy and the school’s image, what’s even worse is that they just didn’t want to deal with it. Instead, the CBC did a survey approach to the students, “The results are stark: 41 percent of boys say they were physically assaulted at high school; 26 percent of girls say they experienced unwanted sexual contact at school; one in four students first experienced sexual harassment or assault before Grade 7.” To elaborate on my points, I will look into what could be the reason there is violence towards boys, how it affects others and why schools act that way.

First of all, boys get into fights mainly because they were taught to respond violently to anything that harms their notion of masculinity. Boys are taught to take up a stereotypical concept of manhood. For instance, they should always be ready to fight and get aggressive. We have normalized it for men to solve a problem by physically and verbally assaulting the other but not when they show or talk about their feelings. They can’t reach out to anyone, because it indicates that they can’t deal with it on their own. It would lead to insults thrown at them because the qualities of being emotional and asking for help are not seen as manly but seen as a feminine characteristic.  In Kimmel’s “Masculinity,” what it means to be a man is to be unlike a woman (2). In other words, a man is completely the opposite of women, who must show that they can fight when needed and deal with it like a man. The gender binaries are defined as mutually exclusive of each other and in terms of lack, negation and opposition.

Furthermore, boys tend to get bullied or bully others, likely because of how much pressure there is to be considered a man. For instance, the pressure boys face playing sports, how coaches use languages such as “you play like a girl” or “don’t be a pussy” to make them perform better. How boys compete on who is more of a man and their performance is the sole measure of how much of a man they are. Kimmel remarks in “Homophobia”, “…making sure that nothing even remotely feminine might show through” (148). Toxic masculinity, thus, relies on antifemininity as one of its main pillars.

Moreover, in violence against girls, we see how the forced idea of manhood works negatively towards both boys and those around them. A common reason why there are sexual assaults is that a girl’s “no” is not taken for an answer by those who have been taught to be unfailingly dominant and to never back down. Therefore, a lot of sexual violence comes from a man wanting to have and maintain the power and superiority that traditional definitions of masculinity grant them over girls and women.

Lastly, the reason why violence in schools doesn’t seem to decrease is that the institutions remain still and do nothing. They want to protect their image. However, their reputation is based on how the students are doing. The school affects the behaviour of the students, but they don’t do anything to change because institutions and society, in general, have excused such behaviour with the casual “boys will be boys.” Kimmel states in “Masculinity” that gender is not some “thing” one has but a specific set of behaviours that are produced in specific social situations (2). This proves that an institution such as school has a major role in fortifying prescriptive attitudes and behaviours.

To conclude, violence in schools shows that stereotypical manhood harms boys and others. Schools should work on becoming safe faces to accommodate students of all kinds and be flexible with their teachings and attitudes in order to be at pace with the understanding that the world is coming to- how gender, as a social construct, should relax its boundaries and allow greater space for personal expression.

Work Cited

Kilmartin, Christopher, and Andrew P. Smiler. “Defining Men’s Studies.” The Masculine Self, Cornwall On Hudson, NY, Sloan Publishing, 2019, pp. 1–7.

Kimmel, Michael.“Masculinity.” International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Ed. William A. Darity, Jr. 2nd ed. Vol. 5. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008. 1-5. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 9 June 2014. 1-5. Print.

Kimmel, Michael. Masculinity as Homophobia. 1994.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence-editors-note-1.5331402

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence-marketplace-1.5224865

Fighting, Concussions and Suicide in Hockey

As kids, a lot of boys and girls around me were taught to idolize and strive to become their favorite sport stars. Who could blame them? Everybody wants fame and notoriety and especially the money, but at what cost. This subject touched me deeply as I have been on all sides of this argument and I can tell you it is not as black and white as its seems. I was one of those kids, not by choice but because my father told me I was to be one of them. When I was in elementary school the experimentation on what I was good at began, I was put into different sports, in soccer the shoe didn’t fit and I couldn’t skate for the life of me so it was decided that i was going to be a football player. I wasn’t allowed to complain because I was “lucky” that I had size and strength and my parents were paying for my seasons. At the time I hated everything to do with football and my position, all i did was hit, every whistle I would hit and get hit and this was the thing I hated most in life, in all my years of football I must have racked up 4-6 concussions. And all I got back from this was my dads approval and post traumatic stress. I played football from elementary all the way until last year, quitting was hard, the sport was part of me at this point, i was introduced to friends and family as “My son James, yes hes a monster, he is a giant, you should see what he does on the field!!”

Now one might ask why someone in my position would stay and continue playing and the answer is simply that you are stuck. In my case just discussing how much I disliked the sport would start an argument, the old be a man was thrown around a bunch of times and i cant blame anyone for saying this to me. After all look what football gave me, i was finally confident and proud and I wasn’t being bullied anymore. I loved the attention i got from my dad and everyone around me yet I despised all of them so much for minimizing me to my sport at the same time. The sport is also a family and I have made countless brothers while playing. My coaches volunteered their time for me and all the kids on the team, I will forever be in their debt, nevertheless I can never take my years of football back and all the violence and hitting is stuck with me now.

Thus the situation is not black or white at all, as a player how can your opinion count when your whole livelihood is thanks to the fans and the forefathers of the sport that had it way harder? What can you do if the answer to all the points you raise is man up? I think that in sport, many men feel similar to me, I don’t believe that all hockey players crave violence and fighting but i think that as a player you are conditioned to love what you do. Living by the “code” and being a “real man” are conditioned habits that are harmful yet players are formed in such a way that they see violence in sport as fulfilling.

The point of this blog is not to diminish the work of athletes or the sports they play, in fact sports and competition will never go away and it is important to embrace these things. I also believe that my opinion and life story is similar to thousands of people just like me who love their sport but understand the pain it caused them. In terms of professional players I think that it is important to understand the importance of the individual over the sport, team or even the fans. Although the fans make a sport it would be selfish to demand that fights and certain forms of physical contact remain in a sport if it obviously tens to lead to negative consequences for the majority of players.

As a final point it is important to think about future generations. Players today must set an example to young and impressionable kids, as well it is important for there to be a disassociation of violence in sport and the emphasis on competition. Contact in sports does not have to be violent, it in my opinion fans and toxic masculinity that push the notion of physical and emotional violence for entertainment. Players must be given the final say, as of course it is their sport, but as fans and allies it is important to create a safe and understanding environment that encourages true dialogue.

The first episode “The Code” of the CBC’s The Fifth Estate and the CBC documentary “School Violence: How To Fight For Safer Schools have opened my eyes about the tremendous impact of masculinity in our Canadian society. In my opinion, these masculine beliefs, that say that men must be tough, strong, agressive, and get what they want no matter the price, negatively affect our society. we can see the results in schools and in our national sport (the hockey). While school violence is an outcome of what happens inside the Canadian families, hockey is a mirror of our of our society. First of all, according to Dr. Christopher Kilmartin, the desconnection of fathers from home has conceived many generations of men and women that have had  a lack of love from their fathers and who think that men are superior than women. It is inevitably to see violence and sexual harashment in schools if it is what we all have experienced in our families, and seen on T.V. and internet. We all accept violence while supporting Hockey and the implicit fights within. Kids watch this violence on T.V.  and reproduce it at schools. Eventually, their children will be, consciously or unconsciously,  taught in violence. In the case of sexual abuse, it also starts at home when boys and girls see that the father takes control over the mother. Boys might end up thinking that it is normal to use women to satisfy their sexual necessities regardless of their opinion ,and girls may belief that it is acceptable that men take control over them. This is a cycle that never ends that begins in raising children. However, us, as the new generation, have the power of change. The first step is to reformulate the concept of men. By acknowledging that men do not have to be tough, emotionally disconnected, agressive, in control of women, and the only providor to be a ‘real man’, we give a chance to equity.