Woman Expertly Explains Why Young Men Getting 'Left Behind' & Turning To The Far-Right Isn't An Issue That Young Women Need To Address
"I don't know why the framing isn't about how the patriarchy has failed us, all men included."
Jose Calsina | Shutterstock The New York Times podcast, "The Daily," recently addressed the wide political gap between young men and young women, especially in the upcoming Presidential election. Data found that more and more young men are starting to completely switch their political affiliations based on progressions made in society by women.
While it's an interesting and thought-provoking revelation, the language used to address the disparity has caused a bit of criticism, especially from a content creator and online commentator named KJ Miller. In a TikTok video, Miller expertly explained why she was upset about the framing of the conversation and the burden to fix the problem seemingly being insinuated that it needs to fall on the shoulders of young women.
The woman explained why young men getting 'left behind' and turning to the far-right isn't an issue young women need to address.
"I have to talk about this New York Times Daily podcast and article about the difference between young men and young women, and the stark divide of young women voting for Kamala and a slight majority, but majority, of young men voting for Trump," Miller began in her video. She explained that the tone and words used to talk about the divide made her "blood boil."
Miller was referring to four national New York Times/Siena College polls conducted from December 2023 to June 2024, which found that when President Biden was still in the race, men ages 18 to 29 favored Trump by an average of 11 percentage points, while young women favored Biden by 28 points. In another poll conducted, taken after Harris announced that she was running against Trump, young men favored Trump by 13 points, while young women favored Harris by 38 points, a 51-point gap.
When young men were interviewed about their plans to vote for Trump, they admitted to feeling undervalued and that it was 'harder' to be a man.
They described wanting to support the idea of strength in a president and while they didn't seem to address the problematic and bigoted stance of Trump's campaign, young men were more worried about economic factors.
They were concerned about how they could fulfill the traditional masculine role in the family during a time when women were starting to deviate from that expectation.
In Miller's video, she pointed out that, historically, young people have always leaned to the left, but now, that's not the case.
"They trace it back to the fact that things have been changing for years and years. One of the things that changed is more rigorous academic standards earlier on in the classroom that benefits young girls."
The woman emphasized that because young women are starting to challenge the patriarchal norms, men are feeling threatened by it.
When it comes to significant gains economically, women are making larger strides than men are. In 2023, women made up 47% of the civilian labor force, up from 30% in 1950. Women also make up 51% of the college-educated workforce for those ages 25 and older.
Miller acknowledged that fact and how women are earning more lucrative salaries in the workforce as well. "They're just like all these little proofs that women are essentially outpacing men but it feels so much like the framing of this is, 'Oh no. We're leaving our young men behind.'"
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She continued, "I don't know why the framing isn't about how the patriarchy has failed us, all men included. To me, that's the only story the patriarchy has told these men, that no matter what, you get to live your dream life and you get to have dominion over women."
As women have worked tirelessly and fervently to advance in society, especially economically, they've realized that they don't want to subject themselves to the mediocrity of what men have provided since the beginning of time.
Instead of men realizing that the patriarchy is to blame for their feelings of loneliness, they've decided that voting for Trump will fix their issues.
"It's so angering because we're still coddling these men instead of saying point blank, all of us have been harmed by this system," Miller insisted. This doesn't mean that we should be ignoring the struggles that men are going through, including a loneliness epidemic. But, it shouldn't have to fall on the shoulders of young women to once again, prop up these young men at the risk of having to put ourselves down to make them feel worthy.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.