I wanted to give a shout out to my brother, John, who recently got an A+ in his Women's Health class at the University of Michigan. While I'm always proud of my brother, I'm especially proud because he was willing to take a class that isn't always popular among guys.
Throughout my college career, I encouraged my guy friends to take a Women's Studies class. I told them not only will it help them to think critically, but it fulfills a race and ethnicity requirement (at least at the University of Michigan). I even tried to appeal to their more primal instincts---the heterosexual guy to girl ratio is often drastically in their favor!
However, I was always met with a wall of skepticism.
I asked my brother what he learned from the class and he said that it was helpful to learn about a variety of viewpoints and issues that are different than his own. I also asked him if he would recommend the class to other guys--he said yes, especially for people who are interested in health.
My brother wants to become a pharmacist and it sounds like this class will be a definite asset for him. I think he will be a great pharmacist--not only for men, for women as well.
So here's my question for the feministing community, how do you encourage guys to learn about feminism?
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I've never pushed my brother to learn about feminism in a formal way - ie. taking a women's studies class - but my mother and I have tried to provide examples of a feminist life.
He was taught how to do traditionally 'feminine' things my mother considers basic life skills, such as how to cook and do laundry. We took karate as kids, and had a grand time sparring together as well as other sports. I could go on, but I think you get the idea.
He has grown up into quite a feminist man but, since the question has been brought up, I do wonder if a more academic grounding in the principles behind feminism might make him more effective at recognizing subtler forms of sexism and combating them.