Manspreading, the practice of men sitting with their legs open, is a form of oppression and abuse against women, and it must be fought! Imagine the following scene: you are sitting on the seat of the bus or subway, on your way to work. At a certain point a man gets on and sits next to him with his […]
Manspreading, the practice of men sitting with their legs open, is a form of oppression and abuse against women, and it must be fought!
Imagine the following scene: you are sitting on the bus or subway seat, on your way to work. At some point a man gets on and sits next to you with his legs open, also taking up space on your seat. It is not difficult to imagine this type of situation, since many people experience it on a daily basis. But this act is sexist and has a name: manspreading.
Manspreading is not just inelegance
At first, “spreading” on the seats may seem inelegant or simply distracting, but manspreading is worse than it seems. For Andrea Peres, a lawyer and specialist in women’s rights, domestic violence and crimes against women, this habit is misogynistic and is in the collective unconscious of men: “They understand that women are not worthy of respect if they consider that sharing public space does not mean passing by them, since, for patriarchal society, we should not even be there. For them, women should be at home, busy taking care of household chores.”
In other words, the discomfort of female bodies, which are worked to the point of exhaustion, must give way to the comfort of those who persist in belittling women, even if they don’t know it.
It’s not nonsense!
The lawyer points out that some people might think that manspreading is nothing more than paranoia. However, “the patriarchal order does not always operate in a fixed, visible, perceptible and vulgar way. Over the centuries it becomes more and more sophisticated, discreet and, at the same time, psychologically more violent,” he points out.
It could get worse
For Andrea, today’s manspreading could become tomorrow’s abuse if this practice continues to become natural. “It is no longer necessary. It is in the gesture that the most lethal forms of violence against us occur, because they are almost imperceptible, they affect our dignity and our mental health”, he comments.
To combat this practice, the lawyer recommends that transportation companies raise awareness by posting posters and notices on vehicles. If manspreading is accompanied by harassing behavior, victims can file a complaint, either with a formal complaint or with a post on social media.
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
