By Dr Ian Bethell-Bennett

IN cultural studies, critics talk of the hypermasculinity which is normalising itself in many urban societies.

Hypermasculinity is the ramping up of socially-subscribed and condoned male behaviour. This includes violence against other men, rape, heavy drinking, womanising and boastfulness.

Often this behaviour is especially prevalent in lower-socioeconomic communities where young men feel that the only ability they have to prove themselves is through their visible masculinity.

They develop muscles as a way of attracting attention. This also means they will often use substances that can promote further aggression.

Most importantly, in their minds, and according to Bahamian society that has followed the lead of popular culture, males must be aggressive and loud in order to be males, in order to be respected. Respect is sacred. So if someone steps on their shoes, which is another way that they can demonstrate their masculinity, their male prowess, they have been disrespectful and can be killed for doing so.

To put it in a nutshell, hypermasculinity has become the new measure of normal by which men are said to be masculine, it is the violent trend in our society that does not hold men responsible for any of their actions.

They can behave as they wish without any accountability to themselves or anyone else. It is the kind of behaviour mothers encourage when they tell their sons that they can have babies and not look at the girl after she has become pregnant – “they is man”.

It is the kind of behaviour that fathers insist on their sons demonstrating because that is all they know. These hypermasculine young men can kill people and their mothers will lie, scream and holler that these are their good sons. This behaviour is all they see in the public sphere. The message passed on to these boys is: you are not responsible for your own actions. Whatever you do, you will not be held responsible or accountable. You are free to destroy unchecked.

Creation requires positive energy and a good heart. Destruction, sadly, seems to be socially far more celebrated and easier to do.

When many young men create a life with young women, they take the next step and destroy any positivity in that life. Their negative patterns of hypermasculine behaviour destroys what is around them.

However, if they are ever challenged for their destructive behaviour, their intransigent answer is, “I’s man”. That means that they are devoid of any responsibility for anything and they cannot be challenged by society for their actions because they are doing what society has taught them to do.

We now inhabit a world where men seem to only be valued for their aggression and strength. This reality is transcending all levels of society. Many families no longer teach men the importance of gentlemanly composure and the ability to reason and maintain one’s cool.

The prize is given to the man who can shout the loudest, insult the best and be the rudest.

There is no space left for refined self-composure and self-respect. Our leaders have adopted this hypermasculine behaviour as well: they have become as rude, no matter how ‘well’ they dress, as those they often refer to as thugs.

“I’s man” means that leaders can behave without any care for their words or actions. This is the kind of masculinity we are fostering. We are saying to all young men, “You are not responsible for your action because you is man and man ain’t got to answer in this world or the next for what he does.”

Once upon a time, we understood that people killed through error: many murders happened because of a mistake.

Today, most murders happen because they are planned or passion takes over; they are then celebrated.

Last week I was showing how damaged these models are. What is alarming is that hyper and unbridled masculine behaviour without any responsibility is now not only condoned but expected.

A minister can boast about his illegality and expect not to be sanctioned for it. Another minister can pick up the phone and make a call to an ‘underling’. He is using the rule of the street in his official life – the strongest or most powerful male will win – to tell him that he needs to do his bidding or suffer the consequences. And these examples are countless.

These ministers are not held accountable for their actions. They are not held responsible for what happens afterwards. Their response is simply, “I’s man; you try to do something to me, if you bad.”

We have created a culture that operates on this ethic: “ ‘I is man’ exonerates me as a male from any fear of criticism or reprise for any illegality.

This kind of behaviour, as the Prime Minister so glibly declared months ago, is destroying the country.

“Prime Minister Perry Christie recently said the government is developing new crime fighting strategies to win the ‘war’ that they are fighting against ‘hostile young men’ in the capital (2014).” These hostile young men, Mr Christie, are only deploying the same arsenal of weaponry built around hypermasculinity for which many of their leaders are never held accountable.

The irony is that while the government is never held responsible for any of their damaging actions, any of their mismanagement, any of their low hip shots, any of the destabilising comments, any of their illegality or misappropriations, they expect the young men who are following their exemplary behaviour to behave differently in order to save the country.

Hypermasculinity knows no bounds. It is a powerful weapon that is being used to destroy the very country these men claim to be developing and protecting. The lack of accountability and the ample and increasing irresponsible behaviour allowed to privileged young men and even more privileged older men, speaks to a country that is devoid of reason.

We are creating men who accept no responsibility for any of their actions and then we sit back after they follow the examples of those in charge, and argue that they are destroying a sacred way of life.

Who is they and how did they get here? As mothers and fathers, the same privileges we gave to our sons who impregnated young girls, then stood by and blamed the young women and told sons they should fear not, they did not need to look after their children because they is man, is the same mentality that is devouring any possibility of moving positively ahead in a crime-ridden country where bad men are celebrated and leaders take the same approach.

When will we be willing to change our patterns of gendered thinking and gendered behaviour in order to develop a better society?

Why change anything when no one holds the men who lead recklessly accountable for their bad behaviour and destruction?