Matcha, Clairo, Labubus, and a book on Feminism. This is what I see every single time I open my phone to my Instagram reels or Tiktok. The Internet’s newest favorite term is “performative men,” referring to guys who will take on a certain aesthetic to try to appease girls. Some of the stereotypes that come with this is enjoying a matcha latte, or listening to certain artists like Clairo. I’ll admit, I found the whole thing hilarious at first, but I can’t help but think about the deeper connotations of this trend on American gender roles.
The feminist movement itself has seen many large changes in the past year, with the #MeToo and pro-choice movements are gaining traction. There’s been an undeniable shift in not just focus, but public support. Previously something considered too “progressive,” feminism today is more widely accepted, especially in a more liberal area such as Ann Arbor. Much of this new support is coming from men themselves, who have joined efforts for equality.
As a teenage girl, this isn’t necessarily something that I’m against. If anything, it’s truly relieving to see more boys my age understand their own privilege. On the other hand, it’s not uncommon for most guys to have ulterior motives, as we can see with the “performative male” trend.
The idea of men only contributing to female liberation to try to make themselves more appealing to women is a statement I never thought I would say, but I can see it even with high school boys my age. Feminism is super cool and girls should be treated the same as boys, until that means accepting when a girl rejects you. They would never be misogynistic, until they’re talking about the next girl they’re trying to “bag.”
While they may have the best intentions, performative men are counterintuitive. They stand, to me, as a reminder of how society views girls’ worth: only applicable to their relationship with men. We can only matter if it means that we’ll date some guy. And that’s not what feminism is to me.
Feminism is drinking a matcha latte in the morning with some avocado toast on the side, and then maybe a whole bag of chips because who cares about what I eat! Then, on the way to my work, I’ll unashamedly have Clairo blasted with all my car windows down. At night, I’ll sit on my bed, reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Path, but also binge watching The Summer I Turned Pretty. Of course, I can’t forget my daily doom scrolling session, where another video making fun of performative men will pop up on my for you page. I’ll briefly laugh, and then pull out my laptop to see when my next Mock Trial meeting is scheduled.
