You Throw Like A Girl: The Blind Spot of Masculinity - Softcover

McPherson, Don

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1617757055 ISBN 13: 9781617757051

Publisher: Akashic Books, 2019

Synopsis

In You Throw Like a Girl, former Syracuse University star quarterback and NFL veteran Don McPherson examines very narrow ways in which boys are taught to become men, almost invariably at the expense of women. Exploring the strict set of behaviours and beliefs that underpin our understanding of masculinity, he arrives at the following question: if male privilege comes at the expense of women, is it truly privilege (and does it belong to men?), or is it more accurately defined as oppression? Using examples from his own life, including his storied football career, McPherson passionately argues that we should no longer consider men's violence against women as a 'women's issue' but a 'men's issue.' In You Throw Like a Girl, McPherson analyses how we can engage men in a sustained dialogue, with a new set of terms that are aspirational and more accurately representative of the emotional wholeness of men.

About this title

Review:

"You Throw Like a Girl is one of the most important books ever written by a former elite male athlete. Don McPherson's willingness to look inward and share his insights and experiences on and off the field represents an invaluable contribution to the growing literature about the ways in which limited definitions of 'manhood' cause immeasurable harm to women and men alike."
--Jackson Katz, author of The Macho Paradox: Why Some Men Hurt Women and How All Men Can Help

"I have had the good fortune of interviewing and working with Don McPherson many times over the years. His voice and candor in talking about his own journey and the necessary changes we need to raise healthy and whole men and boys is so compelling and powerful. This thoughtful and inspiring book is an important contribution to this timely conversation. I am grateful for Don McPherson's voice, as a feminist and activist for ending violence against women, and as an advocate for reimagining masculinity."
--Marianne Schnall, journalist, founder of Feminist.com and WhatWillItTake.com, author of What Will It Take to Make a Woman President?

"Don McPherson wrestles with one of the most important questions of our time and one that we have to face head-on in today's world: what does it mean to be a man? He talks of courage, love, fatherhood, and growing up. Men don't face this question in a thoughtful way and the result is that we are coming up short. Don's book helps us to take that journey to real masculinity, not the stereotypical and sometimes dangerous version we see on social media and in film."
--Mike Rawlings, mayor of Dallas, Texas

"In You Throw Like a Girl, Don McPherson explores more than his own place in the masculine testosterone-driven world of football. He takes the societal norms and boundaries placed on so many men and asks the simple but inevitable question, why? He tackles the critical issues of sports, privilege, and gender that have come to define generations of athletes and transcend sports, in an effort to show us all a better way."
--Jon Frankel, correspondent, HBO's Real Sports

"Don McPherson has spent his adult life working to change the perception that girls and women are 'less than men'...Don is not afraid to discuss the tough issues related to masculinity and sexism. He challenges men to join the fight for gender equality by being ever-growing allies to women. This is a must read."
--Richard Lapchick, director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport

"[Don McPherson is a] quarterback for a wider community."
--Newsday

About the Author:

Don McPherson--an All-America quarterback at Syracuse University who went on to play professionally in the NFL and Canada--began his work on gender-based violence prevention in 1994 at Northeastern University's Center for the Study of Sport in Society. He has served on the boards of the Ms. Foundation for Women, the NCAA Sexual Assault Task Force, and the NCAA Board of Governors Commission to Combat Campus Sexual Violence. His educational programs and lectures have reached over one million people in more than three hundred colleges and communities throughout North America.

About this edition

• Publisher: Akashic Books
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1617757055
• ISBN 13: 9781617757051
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 1