A few days ago, in Roger Federer’s farewell match, playing doubles with his friend and competitor Rafael Nadal, they were captured in a photograph, which went viral on social networks, in which both are shown crying visibly moved and Federer holds Nadal’s hand expressing their friendship, companionship and empathy.
Roger Federer left professional tennis afterwards after a successful career. He was No. 1 in the world rankings for 310 weeks, finished the year in that position five times, triumphed in 103 ATP tournaments and 20 Grand Slams. In addition to showing their physical strength, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were able to show their emotions in public and thus become an example of one of the characteristics of the new masculinities.
A public gesture like this, in which a heartfelt emotion of joy, closeness and the end of a stage is externalised, would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. Both world-class tennis players naturally dared to express their emotions without responding to the male stereotype of “macho” coming from the hegemonic patriarchal culture.
It is interesting to wonder whether this same photo with female protagonists, for example Steffi Graf and Serena Williams, would have had the same impact. Surely it would not have gone viral to the extent that the photo I am commenting on did. In our patriarchal culture, women are associated with sensitivity and emotion, with permission to express themselves while “men don’t cry” and therefore a demonstration of affection and affection between two heterosexual men can lead to their “masculinity” or heterosexuality being questioned.
This photo showing the sensitivity of both is worth more than a thousand words or speeches regarding the new masculinities. A powerful image that social networks have celebrated for breaking the stereotypes of “toxic masculinity”.
Masculinities are a cultural construction. As it is understood today, it is a set of attributes, values, behaviours and conducts, whose main characteristics include the social mandates assigned to them: provider, paternity, heterosexuality, rationality, chivalry and risk-taking; and especially the use of physical force as a method of domination.
It is no coincidence that in the studies carried out by Fundación Semilla in the ambit of schools, 93% of sexual aggressions in the 14-17 age group are directed at women, the ratio of perpetrators is 168 men to 10 women and a woman is three times more likely to receive sexual violence in schools than a man.
At Fundación Semilla we highlight this image, which has unparalleled value, as an example for our socio-emotional education workshops and in particular, for when we address the characteristics of the new masculinities.
At Fundación Semilla we work to open up spaces for understanding and making gender violence visible, particularly in school contexts. Overcoming gender stereotypes is a big step towards strengthening school coexistence in its interior, since a large part of the problems of coexistence have their origin in stereotypes and discrimination associated with social expectations based on characteristics associated with gender.
