Violence is a prevailing problem in elementary schools, middle schools and high schools throughout Canada. According to the research made by CBC 41% of boys say they were physically assaulted, 26% of girls say they experienced unwanted sexual contact at school and one in four students first experienced sexual harassment or assault before Grade 7. Fights and verbal harassment can be found at most schools and most of the time boys are the ones involved with these problems. The question here is: Why is violence so prevailing and why are boys more likely to cause violence?

Willingness to fight, desire to fight.

First, whenever a boy is challenged or being picked on everyone expects them to fight. This aggressiveness is one of the main characteristics of masculinity. Indeed, boys are taught that they should engage in the fight and win in order to be recognized. “Give them hell.” was one of the expressions used by Kimmel on the intro to men’s studies it represents how boys will be often confronted. On top of that, wanting to pick fights and win is almost glorified in a certain way, especially during teenage years. This explains how easy it is to begin fights at school or other places like the school bus.

Relationships and Status 

Second, boys are taught that status is important, so competition is also involved with this phenomenon. They want to prove they are better and stronger and that they are not weak. In a lot of cases, they also want to make up for a lack of self-esteem. In addition, another cause of school violence is that friends and peers put pressure on boys. For example, friends can push boys to get involved in fights. It also is common for a group of boys to bully other people together. Boys that disagree with violence will not speak up or report what happened because they are afraid to get rejected since one of the rules of “Bro Code” is no snitching.

Anti-femininity

Third, another of the main characteristics of masculinity is antifemininity this consists on avoiding emotions. This prevents them from being empathetic. The emotions will often accumulate and boil up and will get out eventually, this can take the form of physical aggression.

Sexism

Sexual assault is directly linked to sexism. This is because men tend to think they are superior than women and they consider them as objects. This way of thinking has been taught to them by interactions, the people that surround them, social media, advertisements and the portrayal of men and women in films and TV. They will consider those acts as conquests and as a way to feel superior.

How can we prevent physical assault/fights?

Schools have to raise awareness of how hurtful bullying and school violence is. We as a society can also stop this by changing the idea that boys need to fight and be tough so that physical assault isn’t normalized. Other ways to prevent this kind of violence is to teach the children the importance of emotions and how to handle them as well as giving them resources so that they can seek help if they are experiencing problems in their household or in their life. Lessons on self esteem could also be helpful.

How can we prevent sexual assault?

Putting clear and good policies for these kinds of problems is one of the firsts steps. It is extremely important in order to protect and help the victims and to stop whoever is hurting them. In addition, schools must teach that women are equal to men and that they should be respected. Teaching what exactly is consent and sexual assault is also very important. 

Lastly, we need to change problematic representations of men and women in films TV and social media (this goes for both physical and sexual assault), in order to prevent sexism and challenge the idea of what a man is. It is by breaking apart sexism and masculinity that we will be able to confront the issue of school violence.

Violence has always been a prominent issue in every school, in every grade and any student can suffer from this. Every student has either witnessed or been victims of physical or sexual assault, although less than fifty percent of students have reported it according to CBC. Many different reasons why students do not denounce these assaults are tied to the reactions of both the school system and their peers. Often times, when these situations happen, the victims are afraid that nothing will be done for them and are afraid of the repercussions they will experience after telling their story. The fear comes from being called a “snitch” by their classmates, says Jayden Trudell, a victim of physical violence. Boys and girls experience a different type of violence that is not only restricted to physical violence but also sexual assault or harassment. High school students must depend on themselves and their parents most of the time to get through these circumstances.

The government’s lack of database on violence in schools encourages the education system to deny and reject any allegations made against a student for fear that it will tarnish the schools’ and/or the students’ reputation. There is no concrete number of how many violent incidents happen in school which leaves both the judicial and education system, with the idea that nothing is happening inside a space that is supposed to be safe. It is easier for schools and the administration to take no action when the reports on violent incidents are not accessible to the public, it gives them an advantage since no one has information on these incidents that can be used against them.

Without the parents’ knowledge of what is happening in their children’s schools, it also makes it difficult for the victims to speak on their experiences. The parents that are interviewed in the short CBC documentary are aware that the police is often at their children’s schools but have no further information explaining why they are there or if anyone in danger, including their own kids. The fact that schools withhold this information from the parents reveals that even the schools are not properly equipped or trained to track every violent incident in school. Regardless, even when a student comes forward and talks to an adult that is supposed to be a trustworthy person, the school does not take action to protect the victims or punish the people responsible for these assaults.

Girls in high school suffer mostly from sexual assault, unwanted sexual contact, and are called degrading names. High schools often claim that students are not adults but when a situation like rape happens, the girls are expected to deal with it on their own, find therapy and even act like nothing has happened. One in four girls in high school “face unwanted touching and grabbing” and three in five girls do not report the sexual violence experienced in school, and less than fifty percent of sexual violence incidents are reported. In comparison to boys, they use violence to portray their strength and assert their masculinity, “this contact becomes highly ritualized and sometimes aggressive” (Kimmel 167). Because of this idea that masculinity comes from strength, they are usually victims of physical assault and suffer at the hands of other boys, which may most likely be boys in their classroom. This leads us to assume that the teachers are not protecting their students within their classes, and once they leave those four walls, the victims are even more prone to bullying outside of class times, times where no adults are present and boys are the most vulnerable. Since the government nor the educational system keep track of the violence in schools, it leads the bullies to use weapons other than their fists: forty one percent of boys experience physical violence in school and one in five boys are threatened with weapons. Both boys and girls are left unprotected by the school system, the teachers, the administration and the judicial system.

In order to decrease the violence in schools and to start acting accordingly to every different situation, schools must first talk to their students before making any decisions. The parents should be notified of any incident in school, whether it is about lice, sexual assault or physical violence. The parents have the right to know if they are sending their children to a safe place. By acknowledging the victims and keeping track of the violence present in schools, the boards would take better actions to support the victims and penalize the person inflicting harm. Safety plans and supporting movements like the “SlutWalk” would improve the students’ trust in their administration and decrease the number of assault cases.

References:

Kilmartin, Christopher. “No Man Is an Island: Men in Relationships.” The Masculine Self, Sloan Pub., 2010.

McGuire, Jennifer. “Why CBC Started Looking into Violence in Schools | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 9 Nov. 2019, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence-editors-note-1.5331402.

“School Violence: How to Fight for Safer Schools.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, gem.cbc.ca/media/marketplace/season-47/episode-4/38e815a-011d8f47088.

Many people can easily remember the good memories from high school, but for every good memory there are 5 bad ones. Many of these bad memories are cases of bullying. A lot of my friends have had at least one case of being harassed or bullied by another classmate. My girl friends have all been sexually harassed and my guy friends have been harassed violently. Although many schools have taken measures to ensure bullying is being stopped, it is still a very pressing matter in today’s society. The reasons why violence in schools is still very prominent is because many of these cases are not being reported, young boys are taught to fit certain stereotypes of what a man should be and how girls show dress and act, and lastly, school boards aren’t giving children the support they need to help stop this bullying. The biggest aspect to violence in schools is because society teaches young boys to be heroes and fight their own battles.

Bullying is still a very present matter because many of these cases are not being reported. According to the documentary “The Mask You Live In” one out of four boys have encountered harassment or violence, but only 30 percent report their incidents. This reason is because boys are scared that they will be considered “wusses” or “babies” for tattling on their peers. They have been taught by society to man up and deal with bullying with violence. This aggression stems from the fact that boys and young men are holding in all their emotions because society and their peers say that they can not show emotion.

Boys and men can not show their emotions because ever since human beings distinguished between male and female, there have been differences for each gender and what they are expected to do in their day-to-day lives. Women are stereotyped to be housewives and men are supposed to be the money makers. This is why violence is such a big part of a young man’s life. It has been drilled into their brains ever since birth to be violent and to not let other men step on you. It is also drilled into men’s brains from society that sexual harassment in any shape or form is okay. Rape culture is a very real concept that women must face at least once in their lifetimes.

Lastly, school boards do not do their best to help these situations. This is more of a biased opinion because there are no statistical facts to prove this, however many people, including myself, can agree to this statement. A friend of mine was sexually assaulted at my school. Usually the principal would do something more than just suspending the perpetrator. and the school board did the bare minimum to help her. They suspended the boy and that’s all. They could have done more to reprimand this boy, but they did not. These issues have not only been presented in my high school but other of my friends’ high schools. At my neighboring high school there was an incident where a boy beat up another boy and the principal did nothing other than send the boy to detention. These situations are very common in high schools but there is a mix of students not reporting and the school not doing many things to help the victims of these terrible situations.

In conclusion, the things that we need to do is to stop making violence our social norm and making the school boards stricter on these violent acts. There are some possibilities that these boys are suffering, and they release their tension an anger by violence. It is not okay for these people to do this but if they were helped, they would not do these terrible acts. If it were a social norm for boys and men to be emotional then our lives would be so much more different than how it is right now.

Schools across Canada have all one thing in common; violent incidents which are not often brought up, nor discussed globally. Harassment, threats, physical assault and aggression towards students and teachers is a real-life problem. In this essay, I will discuss the great importance of raising awareness when discussing the topic of violence within schools. Many tend to push things under the rug and to not discuss important topics as such. However, the in-school violence on a daily basis is one topic which puts everyone at risk; teachers, staff members, security, students, and the parents which go to work hoping that their children are safe in school. 

Amongst the many schools across Canada, there are multiple cases in which the parents, and even students within the school are unaware of the violent incidents on a daily basis which occur on school grounds. CBS News reached out to schools across the country to interview parents and students on their outlook on the violence which occurs in schools. CBS News decided to ask them to fill out a survey which would test their knowledge on what goes on in schools when they are at work. The parents of students stated that they were not told about the amount of violent incidents within schools, and they were shocked when told the actual amount of cases. Students were also shocked to find out that 46% of students 16-17 years old were victims of these violent attacks in school. This percentage was not to scare parents and students, but to show how important it is to inform those in school that these incidents are more present than they think. This survey also uncovered that 4 in 10 boys are physically assaulted at school, according to CBS News research. CBS News elaborated on how school boards and governments tend to hide this information from specifically parents, as they do not want to draw too much attention to the school or the violent incidents which occur on school grounds. Parents were appreciative to speak with people from this news broadcast, and to discover information which they were unaware of before. To inform rather than to hide is something much more important, as it will help protect future victims from being threatened in school.

The second reason why violence in schools must be discussed abroad across Canada is not only to students, but to protect teachers as well. Teachers have a very tough role within a school as they are tested of their patience and knowledge on a daily basis. A teacher sets themselves up in a classroom to teach students, unaware of any personal or anger they hold inside from a day-to-day basis. This causes much stress for teachers, being that they are the sole person in the classroom who is responsible for the safety and knowledge of 15-30 students at a time. Violence in schools is one thing which is most harming to teachers as they must not only witness these altercations but are often the same ones to stop the fights, often being also harmed in the process. CBS News discusses how teachers are told to not report all altercations in school in hopes of keeping the real statistics hidden from parents and others outside the school boards. Teachers must risk their lives every day when dealing with the violence in school. in return, they are told to not be truthful, further elevating their personal risks on being harmed on school grounds. Teachers not only deal with physical altercations, but they also are subject to verbal abuse from students. Verbal abuse is one of the many reasons why a teacher may quit their job, as the constant abuse from students can be too much for teachers to handle, affecting their personal lives back at home after a long day of work. Keeping the protection of students and educators in school has not been a priority for the past several years, which therefore, creates a bigger issue when looking at violence in schools overall. 

Amongst the many violent incidents which occur in schools across Canada, most of them are between males. This is when Kimmel’s text discussing masculinity is brought into the picture. In order to analyze why males, feel that violence proves their strength in being a “real man”, we can look into Kimmel’s text in which he states that there are various masculinities in the world, proving how this one image of what a man should be does not exist. However, in schools, male students tend to still believe that they must be seen as strong and powerful in order to be considered a real man. Something which almost every male in school fears is being seen as weak. This, therefore, leads them to become bullies or to become violent on school grounds when in confrontation or in an argument with another student. To be a victim and to not be seen as independent and powerful during a fight is something which many males struggle with. According to CBC Canada, nearly half of teen boys are assaulted in high school through physical altercations. Across Canada, multiple violence incidents occur, but are not often spoken about. These incidents, however, put everyone surrounding them at risk of being harmed, or even killed in some brutal cases. Through Kimmel’s multi-masculinities concept which ranges from culture to culture relates to the violence in schools as it shows that males struggle to find their own masculinity and feel as though the tough and rough male in school is the only one which resembles a strong man. 

In conclusion, violence in school is a topic which must be widely discussed across the country, raising awareness for parents and students. School is a place where students should feel safe and protected in. Canadian schools should seek safer measures on school grounds in order to prevent these violent altercations from getting out of hand. Although safety measures have been improved in most schools by security, monitors, and cameras, there is plenty of room for improvement. Hopefully, school will become a place where students can feel safe and protected in again, allowing them to focus mainly on their educations and to enjoy the daily activities with other students, instead of living in fear of being the next harmed victim. 

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References:

“’I Felt Helpless’: Teachers Call for Support amid ‘Escalating Crisis’ of Classroom Violence | CBC Radio.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 17 Feb. 2019, http://www.cbc.ca/radio/thesundayedition/the-sunday-edition-for-february-17-2019-1.5017616/i-felt-helpless-teachers-call-for-support-amid-escalating-crisis-of-classroom-violence-1.5017623.

McGuire, Jennifer. “Why CBC Started Looking into Violence in Schools | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 9 Nov. 2019, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence-editors-note-1.5331402.

Kimmel, M., & Bridges, T. (2011). Masculinity. Oxford Bibliographies Online Datasets. doi: 10.1093/obo/9780199756384-0033

Fletcher, R. (2019, October 24). Boys in Alberta schools get assaulted, threatened, robbed and slurred more often than rest of Canada | CBC News. Retrieved May 19, 2020, from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/school-violence-bullying-alberta-student-survey-1.5331861

There is an institutionalized violence between men that is unregulated and under reported. These incidents are usually brushed under the rug and not taken seriously because of the institution’s opinion of how these men should show their masculinity. Usually, the motto of ‘boys will be boys’ is a means of excusing violence, saying fighting is a natural part of boys being brought up. This theme exists in schools, teaching young impressionable boys a toxic view on masculinity.

In schools, children are exposed to violence at a very early age, and the lack of a proper response normalizes this behavior, therefore reinforcing the gender stereotype of male aggressiveness. Although both girls and boys are affected by bullying, they are generally subjected to different types; boys are most likely to face fighting, and while girls can also be victims of this, there is a clear division of violence showing that the majority of victims are men.

Since very young, children are bombarded with cultural notions of how to act in line with their gender, masculinity and femininity. There are harsh guidelines set in place to follow these gender norms, and taunts towards children for not following them is not only accepted, but encouraged: “[M]asculinity must be policed, defined as the use of insults and slurs to “encourage” boys and men to behave in ways that are more consistent with the cultural definition of masculinity”(Kilmartin, Christopher, and Andrew P. Smiler 6). Institutions like schools police boys into thinking violence is okay by using the phrase ‘boys will be boys’. 

Deborah David and Robert Brannon postulated that there are four primary characteristics to American masculinity. Among them, one is called Adventurousness and Aggressiveness (Kilmartin, Christopher, and Andrew P. Smiler 6). This characteristic talks about the physical risks a man takes and how he can become violent if necessary. In extreme cases, this characteristic can condone men’s violence. Since the heart of masculinity is antifeminity, it rejects emotions other than lust and anger. Because of this, boys grow up with an unhealthy way to express their emotions, which can bring about violence. When brought up in a way that promotes violence among boys, it is easy for society to brush off the issues of violence in schools that are brought up as boys simply being boys, which completely disregards the problem at hand. This can leave the victims of violence without help, and in extreme cases, the circumstances lead them to be unable to live their life as they did previously or continue their education.

Schools do not report these incidents of violence, which leads to the possibility for victims to be denied their right to education. In the CBC documentary “Violence in Schools”, schools are keeping secrets from staff, students and parents by hiding their number of cases of violence. Teachers and parents are asked about how many cases of violence they know their school had, and they had not heard of a single one, when in fact there were many cases. 

When CBC asks school boards to access their data, they are met with requests for money or refusals, justifying it through privacy (though CBC was not asking for names) or reputational risks. Schools are not doing enough to protect their children; they just want to protect themselves and their reputation. 

Teachers have a special power to be able to influence and mold children as they are people children spend most of their day with, a person of authority, as well as a role model. If a teacher has a certain mindset, it can easily be communicated to children. When the school does not take action to report violent behaviors, it is an indication that they are allowing problematic, violent behaviors to pass without consequence. By saying ‘boys will be boys’, they are normalizing this violence in boys, which is harmful not only to the victim of the violence, but also to the offender. The offender is taught that his actions are okay, and that he is acting like a man should. 

The statement also downplays the consequences the victim faces. In the documentary, a boy was punched and slammed into the ground, resulting in many injuries that affected his brain and hearing. These injuries hinder his ability to go through life as he once did and affect his education. The outcome of violent situations is many times very damaging, and excusing the offender’s behavior with a statement like ‘boys will be boys’ does nothing to help the victim. What people need is schools to acknowledge cases of violence to be able to prevent them in the future. All schools deal with violence, and if the schools accept that then there is no need for them to hide numbers. They can start creating an atmosphere for students that does not promote such a toxic view of masculinity as well as keep their students safe.

In conclusion, excusing violent behavior, like using the phrase ‘boys will be boys’, is a bad way to deal with violence. It focuses on the idea that men are violent by nature and there is nothing that can be done to teach them otherwise. However, this mindset only reinforces the negative stereotype of men, which keeps them locked in the man box, and does not offer an opportunity for reflection or growth. What can schools do to actively help boys who are affected by violence?

Works Cited 

“4k, A Concerned Teacher Talking to a Young Boy Teased at School. Slow Motion.” Shutterstock, http://www.shutterstock.com/video/clip-29205262-4k-concerned-teacher-talking-young-boy-teased.

“Dr. Janet Sasson Edgette.” Dr. Janet Sasson Edgette, janetedgette.com/2019/01/boys-will-be-boys-just-a-lousy-excuse-for-bad-behavior/.

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

“Martech Today.” Martech Today, martechtoday.com/data-privacy-picking-lock-pandoras-box-193971.

“University of Minnesota Extension.” University of Minnesota Extension, extension.umn.edu/bullying-and-violence/bullying-big-problem-big-consequences.

“When Bullying Turns to Violence: Do Schools Know What’s Really Going on? (Marketplace).” When Bullying Turns to Violence: Do Schools Know What’s Really Going on? (Marketplace), CBC, 5 Oct. 2019, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9p-DAJZumg.

It’s been more than 50 years that hockey was created and fighting has always been part of it but it has changed over the years. Everyone has different opinions on fighting in hockey, some of them encourages that and some others wishes that fighting was never part of this sport due to the tragedies that happened to them and their families. Even though the percentage of hockey athletes suffering from fighting is not really high it still leaves a big impact on the society when something bad happens to one of these players like suicide or dead from a fight.

In the game of hockey, the enforcers role is to protect his teammates from getting injuries. The enforcers job isn’t to be the star of the team, for him scoring a goal isn’t by putting the puck in the other team’s net, is it by fighting and taking down the other team’s player who disrespected one of his teammates. This can refer to a characteristic of masculinity in one of kimmel’s text which is: “aggressiveness”. (Man box, 6)  Hockey coaches love aggressive players but the only reason why these players have a chance to stay up and play pro is by being the team’s enforcer and play by “the code” which is if someone take out one of your players you back him up and protect him. Don Cherry says that: “you can’t hit someone when he is down on the ice, “the code” is simply to fight with honour without any cheap shots or sucker punches”.(fifth estate) Some of the players like Nick Kypreos who didn’t know what they were getting themselves into when they got drafted decided to do whatever it takes to be able to pursue their dream. This also refers to masculinity just like said by Kilmartin in Men studies: “a man takes risks and doesn’t back down”. (What a man does, 6)  Kypreos says that he didn’t want it to be the guy that gets kicked off the team because he couldn’t do anything else than fighting so he said that he’ll do anything that it takes to be able to have a career in the NHL.

Bob Mckeown from the fifth estate says that: “fighting is a way to keep hockey from being more violent since it’s a sport played with steel sticks” (2010). A good example to that would be the act of Marty Mcsorty during the game that ended his hockey career as an enforcer. It was a fight he lost against Donald Brashear so he tried again and again to fight him but Donald didn’t want to. Marty’s solution was to hit Donald’s head with his steel stick which got him the longest suspension in the hockey history and a criminal record with 18 months of prohibition. This refers to big statement said by Christopher Kimmel which was “willingness to take physical risks and become violent if necessary”. (6) Marty took a big risk that cause his entire career and even more, he had a criminal record at the end of this game.  All this caused Donald to have a 3^rd degree concussion which mostly will have a big impact in the future. This isn’t the only way these enforcers have tragedies like these. Don Sanderson who played in the Ontario senior league after getting cut at 21 years old by the Toronto York university hated fighting but it was the only way that he would still be playing hockey. After one of his games, Don told his dad that he fought to protect his captain because his captain was more important to the team then he is. December 12, 2008, Don got into a fight that caused his life. During the fight, his helmet came off and he lost balance and slammed his head first on the ice. He was in a coma for 4 months then passed away.

Chronical traumatic encephalopathy which is CTE is a disease cause by the repeated head injuries. CTE isn’t a disease cause by concussions only, it is processed slowly by little head injuries players like Todd Ewen who played 11 seasons in the NHL and have fought over 145 times will mostly developed CTE in their 40’s. CTE could cause difficulty to connect the dots in the brain like in the case of Todd which one day called his wife telling her that he had no clue where he was and needed her to be able to find his way home. Todd’s wife said that he would be a different person every day. As an example he would be angry one day, mad another day, sad the day after that. Todd’s wife said that he would never talk about how he feels or more precisely he would never talk about his concussions. This refers us again to Kilmartin’s men’s studies text where he says that: “men are directed to not show emotions…because emotion is often considered a central and defining characteristic of femininity”.(men’s studies)  In other situation like Wade Belak it could go as far as suicide. Toward the end of his career, he told his wife that during one of his trips when he was on top of a building, he thought about how it would feel like to jump down the building and end everything there. After his career ended, Belak decided to start figure skating. Before one of his trips to Toronto, he went to his doctor to get more of his happy pills but the doctor didn’t tell him how many pills he needed to take every day so he read the instructions and took 2 pills daily. This caused Belak a change in his feelings and acts with his family. Belaks wife says that one day while he was brushing his daughter’s hair, he suddenly started hitting her head with the brush. He might have thought that he was in a hockey fight again with another enforcer but when his wife came and took away the brush, he was unconscious of what just happened. During his trip to Toronto he called his wife and told her that he was going crazy. This was the last time his wife spoke to him because he took his life away after that call.

Hockey enforcers decides to take this path because they have no clue what is waiting for them. They’re trying to act tough, be a man and not back down even though they didn’t want to have this kind of career. If we ask any of these retired enforcers suffering CTE if they would’ve still played in the pro league if they knew they were going to suffer from this disease at the end, they would all have one common answer and that would be no. Now every hockey enforcer knows about these tragedies, do you think they will be less fights?

Cited source

“The Code – Episodes – The Fifth Estate.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, www.cbc.ca/fifth/episodes/2009-2010/the-code.

“Hockey Fight: Wives Reveal the Cost of Concussions – Episodes – The Fifth Estate.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, www.cbc.ca/fifth/episodes/2019-2020/hockey-fight-wives-reveal-the-cost-of-concussions.

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

Men are traditionally thought as aggressive and being tough, and this ideology is still very prominent in the 21st century. One of the areas containing a lot of physical contact is in sports. You might be thinking of fighting sports such as boxing, mixed martial arts or even football, where physical contact is the goal of the game, but no. The team sport with the most fighting and unnecessary injuries is hockey. One of the main reasons it is so prominent is perfectly explained by Kilmartin: “aggressiveness” (7). In his book explaining masculinity, “Masculinity is characterized by a willingness to take (physical) risks and become violent if necessary” (7). Men are just naturally more aggressive and seek fighting more than women. This, combined with the long history and ideology of fighting in hockey makes minimizing this aspect of the game very difficult.

As “The Fifth Estate”, a CBC documentary, discovers an unwritten code, nicknamed “The Code”. This hidden law of hockey is kept by the pride, feeling of accomplishment and love for the game they professionally play. In these unwritten rules, when a smaller player gets bullied by a larger player, it is the responsibility of his teammates to help him. These are called the enforcers and their main job is to fight with the other team. Another rule is to take the helmets off, to not get hand injuries after dropping the mitts, because apparently, hands are more important than a brain to some people.

The brain is the central organ to every person, and is the reason we are alive. In hockey, however, entertainment for some people seems more important then this vital organ. Multiple brain injuries are caused by tens and hundreds of small, repetitive hits to the head, and in the long term cause degradation in the human brain. One of the main injuries that hockey players can get because of fighting is Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Of course, the NHL completely refutes this fact, as less fights could possibly mean less viewers and in turn less money. The disease is not obvious at first and has some symptoms such as “impulse control problems, aggression, depression, and paranoia” (Concussion Legacy Foundation). The symptoms continually get worse, until the person with it is unrecognisable.

An example of players diagnosed with this awful disease are Wade Belak and Todd Ewen. These NHL players decided to take their own lives because of CTE. They would constantly have severe memory loss, complete disconnections with the outside world and severe mood switches, even with loved ones and good friends. Wade’s wife says how he would sometimes turn into someone else and not have any idea what he was doing. She says that “he was trying to brush her (his daughter) hair after the bath, and he smacked her with the brush, which he has never done anything like that” (Hockey wives 15:25).

It is time to change what the code really means and does to certain people, as even though it is a way to respect the other players, it is not worth respecting if it means life or death. For players who are only on a team to fight, there is a huge amount of pressure on their shoulder because they must fight often, even if they don’t want to. These are the players that have the most risk of suffering long term brain damage. The first step to making hockey a safer game is to convince the officials and coaches of the NHL that fighting is useless and the game would work fine without it, since in the end, the game is happening for entertainment purposes.

1. “What Is CTE?” Concussion Legacy Foundation, 15 Apr. 2020, concussionfoundation.org/CTE-resources/what-is-CTE.
2. Hockey fight: Wives reveal the cost of concussions – Episodes – The Fifth Estate. (2020). Retrieved 4 May 2020, from  https://www.cbc.ca/fifth/episodes/2019-2020/hockey-fight-wives-reveal-the-cost-of-concussions
3. The Code – Episodes – The Fifth Estate. CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/episodes/2009-2010/the-code.
4. Kilmartin. “Defining Men’s Studies.”

Violence in schools is something that everyone is aware of but not something many people talk about. It is often covered up by school boards to prevent a “bad reputation” for the school in which it occurs. Boys are more likely to perform acts of violence as well as be targeted by them. 41% of boys have been physically assaulted in high school  (Mcguire 2019) and this is not a coincidence. Many factors contribute to the fact that boys are much more involved in school violence than their female peers.

In North American society, boys learn to fit into stereotypes of masculinity based on the male figures around them. They follow “rules” of which characteristics they should have such as strength, independence, and hard work ethic (Kilmartin 2). This is necessary for them to feel accepted by their peers. Boys feel lots of pressure to fit into these characteristics and the pressure can lead them to act violently either due to repressed anger from not expressing their emotions in a healthy manner, or they can be the targets of violent acts if they do not fit into the boxes set up for them by society. Boy’s relationships with their friends promote emotionlessness and their feelings are often displayed through violence and insults (Kilmartin 169). These social norms carry on in life and men are likely to act with violence and lack of emotion regardless of who they are with.

The concept of masculinity in our society depends greatly on homophobia. Homophobia is not about the fear of gay men, but rather a man’s fear that another man will emasculate him (Kimmel 147). Throwing around homophobic slurs and acting as if you are tougher than everyone else is a part of boys need to be seen as masculine. With this comes bullying and the hierarchy of teenage boys showing off their toughness. Boys bully those who they do not deem to be manly. They exclude girls, homosexuals, people of other cultures with different definitions of manliness, and anyone who does not exude masculinity at all times (Kimmel 150). They will avoid waring clothes that look too “girly”, walking in a way that looks too “gay”, and avoid talking about how they feel completely so they are not seen as a feminine person. Sometimes this exclusion turns into violent hateful acts towards these people, all because of what boys think it is to be “a real man”.

There are not only acts of physical violence in high schools, but acts of sexual assault as well. Kimmel has stated that “What it means to be a man is to be unlike a woman” (2). Men distance themselves so much from their femininity, that they start to belive women to be lesser than them. This sometimes evolves into boys bullying girls, men oppressing women, and overall the idea that men are stronger and smarter and better than women just because of the characteristics they display. Men will often explicitly show interest in women to prove to others that they aren’t gay (Kimmel 148), and sometimes they take this a step farther. To prove that they are powerful and can get what they want, while proving that they are interested in women, some men will force women to participate in sexual activities without her consent. While most cases in schools are of sexual harassment such as catcalling and asking for or sending nude pictures, there are far too many cases of sexual assault. 26% of girls have said they experienced unwanted sexual contact while in school (Mcguire 2019). If boys were brought up knowing that they can express their feminine side and that femininity is not something to be ashamed of, there would be far less unfortunate cases happening in high schools.

Saying “boys will be boys” is not enough to repair the men entering society with twisted beliefs and poor mental health. The things they learn about masculinity and how to be a “real man”, harm not just themselves, but their peers, friends, and family. Teaching boys ways in which to healthily express their emotions could tremendously decrease the amount of violence present in our schools as well as in society in general.

Works Cited:

Kilmartin. “Defining Men’s Studies.”

Kilmartin. “No Man is an Island: Men in Relationships”

Kimmel. “Masculinity”

Kimmel, Michael S. “Masculinity as Homophobia.” 1994, pp. 147–151., doi:10.4135/9781452243627.n7.

Mcguire, Jennifer. “Why CBC Started Looking into Violence in Schools.” CBC, 2019, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/school-violence-editors-note-1.5331402.

School is an institution to educate children and the way to interact with other people. School is where the knowledge of the children comes from and to learn the basis of our world. Children starts to have fights with others that became a problem and since then, it is still happening. As what in masculinities studies, it has similarities of situations like the children, parents and institutions.

Firstly, violence is everywhere that also happens in school that most of the students are getting into fights between boys and girls, and girls are experiencing sexual assaults by male students. To correlate it to what I have learned in class is that boys are into fights and that it’s okay for them to be involved because it’s said that violence will make them a man or to have sex with the opposite sex. As well, they should not show their emotions as what the masculinities studies have revealed, however that is the society wants them to perceive themselves. In reality, boys have the rights to show their true emotions even though, it is not manly enough because they should decide themselves, not other’s opinion or by their judgement. Violence is not the answer to be a man but being respectful to other people is a great personality to have within ourselves, so that people will respect us back.

Secondly, parents doesn’t know anything about what’s happening in their children’s school and it’s just the fact that they don’t really ask. That’s why, it’s a problem in masculinity too. They would not know the true feelings or emotions of their sons and their true identity. Parents might try to make their sons fit into society’s ideal of a man, but they don’t know that it makes their children feel distant from them. As results, children do not open up to their parents that much, from the teachers or counselors too as they’re having hard time to show their true selves. Good thing that there are some people who wants to reveal the problem just like the media. As for the masculinity, there are a community called LGBTQ who fights for the rights of being free, free from being a man and to be different and be accepted to the society.

Thirdly, school boards don’t talk anything about violence. They tried to avoid it because they think that it can ruin their reputations, just like the principals. They take actions, but it’s not enough to give justice to the victims. Victims are still scared because the attackers can still do it again. School boards are keeping it secrets and hiding to everyone. They think giving suspensions to the attackers can solved the problem but it’s not enough. Just like gendered institutions, they show that institutions are gendered equality. That male and female are equal. In reality, it’s far from equal. They made us believe of something that it’s easy for them to handle or to hide. Just like the gender identity and the salaries of the opposite sex. Men have higher salary and have better opportunity of jobs rather than women who are socially inferior in jobs just because of the physical strength. Therefore, they want us to turn a blind eye to it.

To conclude, there is always a problem and that the problem of masculinity is still present until now. But seeing the violence in masculinity or in school either way, it is still not far from each other. The experience of the two is uncanny. Violence is everywhere that is hard to prevent it. Stand what is right and fight it. Accept our true self and have courage to flaunt it to the world. Having self confidence is the key to acceptance.

Introduction

Violence has always been a problem in societies across the world. It can take many forms (psychological or physical), occur in different places (workplace, online or etc.) and can target anyone for any reason. Where does this originate from? The first instances of violence that we can all probably recall is during our school days seeing bullying and harassment firsthand. Masculinity plays a big part in why people experience bullying and violence in school and in everyday life.  My goal, with this essay, is to show how the toxic masculinity stereotype plays a big part in the existence of bullying and violence in school. In addition to that, this essay will also cover the psychological effects on men and how we can help limit the occurrence of bullying. To achieve these goals, the reflection is split into three sections: Homophobia, Power & Toughness and Fatherhood.

Homophobia

According to a study by Bully Free Alberta, the rate of discrimination experienced among students who identify as a member of the LGBTQ is three times higher than heterosexual youth. Homophobia is one of the key issues in masculinity because being homosexual or appearing feminine in any way, in the view of other men, emasculates and humiliates you as a man. This relates to bullying because being seen as different than the rest because you are feminine, or homosexual can lead to being picked on, verbally abused, excluded from activities/groups and more. The reasoning behind this is because being associated with gay/feminine men gives others the idea that you are homosexual/feminine yourself and that scares them because they believe that they will be emasculated and picked on as well by their peers: “As adolescents, we learn that our peers are a kind of gender police, consistently threatening to unmask us as feminine, as sissies” (Kimmel, 148). They hate the fact that being a certain way threatens their manhood, so they resort to being disrespectful and aggressive towards homosexual men to demonstrate to their peers that they are masculine and have nothing to do with them (members of the LGBTQ) which leads to homophobic bullying. “Boys among boys are ashamed to be unmanly” wrote an educator in 1871. The quote says it all; Men are scared of other men. To be able to limit or even stop homophobic bullying, we need to get over these set of “rules” and grow to love and understand each other.

Power & Toughness

Being a man is associated to many stereotypes and beliefs. One of the most prominent and widely known beliefs is that all men should be tough and powerful: “Manhood is equated with power over women, over other men” (Kimmel, 149). They are constantly being observed, scrutinized and judged by our peers for everything that we do. Also, they are always expected to fit in the category of a tough, powerful, masculine, athletic, apathetic individual and constantly being challenged by other men and even women. In other words, they have to “be men”. This directly relates to bullying and violence in schools because that is the behaviour that is expected from them. “One boy will accuse another of being a sissy, to which another boy will respond that he is not a sissy, that the first boy is. They may have to fight it out to see who’s lying. […] And what will his father or older brothers tell him if he chooses to run home crying? It will be some time before he regains any sense of self-respect” (Kimmel, 147). Michael Kimmel gives us an excellent example of the kind of situations that happen in the schoolyard and even in workplaces. As described in the quote, men are forced to be tough and retaliate when threatened by other men in a public setting. If they don’t, they risk losing their manhood and being ridiculed by their peers and even by members of their own family. As a result, many of these situations lead to physical violence to prove who is tougher. To be able to decrease violence and bullying in schools, we really need to drop these global assumptions and let men live their lives without constantly fearing of being under the lens of a microscope.

Fatherhood

Paternal parenting (i.e. fatherhood) is crucial to the upbringing and development of young men and determines what kind of person that man will be probably end up as. With that being said, a negative environment at home (parental conflict, abuse, divorced parents, etc.) has negative psychological effects on young men that lead them to lash out, be aggressive and be violent: “Boys from subsequently divorcing families showed more aggression, more difficulty in controlling impulses, less cooperation, and higher anxiety in novel situations than boys from intact families” (Kilmartin, 190). As they are young, the only places that kids go to regularly (excluding home) is school and that’s where they typically express the emotions that they’ve been building up from home and that can lead to violent behaviour towards other kids and faculty staff. We need to come together and be there for our children emotionally and physically to be able to prevent more cases of violence.

Conclusion

To conclude, masculinity plays a big part in bullying and violence in schools. Personally, it hurts me a lot to see my fellow peers go through this because of the numerous expectations and outside factors that affect their psychological health on a daily basis. We need to unite and demolish these ridiculous guidelines and gender boundaries set by society.