The Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement led by Donald Trump is essentially a patriarchal cult. This movement claims that the United States can only become “great again” if modern American men learn to be “tough men” like their fathers and grandfathers, assert control over their “women,” and take back “control.”
This movement encourages men to hide their feelings and use violence. To achieve progress in life, and receive advice not from experts and loved ones, but from famous so-called “alpha males”, such as broadcaster Joe Rogen, or the billionaire owner of the X platform (formerly Twitter) and now the main supporter of Trump, Elon Musk.
This toxic movement, which relies on the promise of returning America to an imagined golden age when women knew their place and therefore life was happy for everyone, has unfortunately set the framework for the upcoming presidential elections in the most powerful countries in the world.
We now live in a reality where millions of American men (and quite a few women) seem to see Donald Trump as a symbol of masculine strength, and view his election to a second presidency as the only solution to the country’s many problems.
The former president and reality TV star has a long history of insulting and belittling women on social media and on television. He regularly makes rude and offensive comments about prominent women, especially those who speak out against him at his television rallies attended by thousands.
He criticizes their physical appearance, insults their families, and even their reproductive choices. At least 26 women have accused him of sexual misconduct and assault. These accusations date back to the 1970s and include rape, unwanted kissing, physical harassment, and voyeurism. Last year, a jury in a civil trial found him guilty of sexual assault and ordered him to pay a plaintiff $5 million.
Trump denies all the accusations, but nonetheless, his contempt for women is clear to anyone who listens to his words and sees his actions. Even his vice-presidential pick, J.D. Vance, is a misogynist, denouncing their Democratic opponents as “childless catwomen.”
In a sane world, this record of misogyny and violent masculinity would be enough to ensure that Trump will never go near the White House again. But we do not live in a rational world.
The MAGA movement has framed the entire election around stereotypes of masculinity. They claimed it was all about physical endurance, a willingness to inflict harm on enemies, and generally being a “manly” man, and they seemed to have managed to convince enough people to stand a good chance of winning this election.
What does this tell us about American society?
In the past few months, we have repeatedly seen Trump’s main opponent, Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, attacked not for her policy positions or behavior in office, but for her youth.
She has been accused of being a “promiscuous” in her youth and having “climbed the career ladder by seeking help from powerful men.” Conservative commentator and filmmaker Matt Walsh wrote on X that Harris “built her career on begging powerful men for handouts,” and Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly called such comments helpful to voters and completely “fair game.”
Of course, these are just unsubstantiated rumours: the old story about using baseless gossip against a successful woman. Even if these rumors were true, her personal relationship history would have no bearing on her work performance, and would not distinguish her from Trump: a notorious polygamist and misogynist who got where he is thanks to money and family connections.
On top of the usual misogyny centered around claims of unchastity, Trump’s “manly” supporters have accused Harris of being a “homewrecker” (due to a previous relationship with a man who was at the time separated, but not divorced, from his wife), and have claimed that she is a man who has transitioned to living as a female (this The accusation is difficult to explain, but perhaps suggests that she would not have succeeded in politics had she been a natural woman) and “has no interest in the future of the country” because she has no biological children.
Harris, the only daughter of a black and South Asian immigrant couple, has also been accused of not being black enough (because she’s half South Asian), not South Asian enough (because she’s half black!), and not American enough (because she was born to immigrant parents). .
Overall, throughout the campaign season, the MAGA movement seemed to be making the argument that Harris should not be elected president because being a woman makes her morally, physically, and emotionally weak, and unfit to lead the “strong and manly” American nation in this moment of crisis and adversity.
Given the apparent success of Trump’s current campaign — for all his scandals and 34 criminal convictions, Trump remains on par with Harris in all recent polls — and his shock victory in 2016 against Hillary Clinton, some voices are beginning to suggest that America maybe It is not yet ready – and perhaps never will be – to elect a woman as leader.
Although these pessimists are undoubtedly right about the misogyny and bias in American society, and the uphill battle that female candidates face in American politics, they seem to ignore two important facts:
FirstlyClinton, who carried a much heavier political burden than Harris, despite losing the Electoral College, won the popular vote in 2016.
secondlyThis year, despite all the misogyny, name-calling, and insults, Kamala Harris is not trailing in the polls, and has a very real chance of winning this election.
Of course, a majority of men (particularly white men) seem to support Trump’s masculinity and show him support (an October Economist/YouGov poll showed Trump with a commanding 52 percent to 43 percent lead over Harris among male voters).
But women, keenly aware of how devastating Trump’s four years have been to their rights, are also showing up to support Harris. According to a recent Harvard Institute of Politics poll, Harris leads among women ages 18 to 29 by a whopping 30 points. In swing states like Arizona and Michigan, tens of thousands of women, especially young women, are known to have voted early to ensure Harris’ victory.
Therefore, a woman could still take over the White House in the near future. However, if Harris wins the election and becomes the first female president of the United States, the American hatred toward women that Trump has exposed, exploited, and deepened, will not disappear overnight.
Just as the election of President Barack Obama in 2008 did not mark the end of racism in American society, Harris’s potential election in 2024 will not end misogyny and prejudice in the country.
Even if Harris, for whatever reason, cannot define what it means to be a woman, Trump certainly can. In his bigoted and misogynistic mind, a woman is merely a sex toy, a mother, or a caregiver, not a full human being with rights, opinions, and freedoms.
This is why, if I were an American, I would not hesitate to vote for Harris over Trump despite all my reservations about her feminist credentials.
We will find out in a few hours whether enough Americans, of both genders, concerned about women’s rights will come to the same conclusion, show up at the polls to support Harris and put an end to the misogyny that has defined Trump’s political career.
But whatever political reality we wake up to on November 6, this election season — and the hatred and violence against women that has been normalized — will have consequences.
In the future, women will be more afraid to run for public office, knowing that they will face harassment and lies simply because they are women seeking power and leadership.
The abuse that Harris has been subjected to over the past months, not because of her policies but because of her gender, has proven that America is not yet a balanced nation that truly supports women’s rights, and is certainly not ready to elect a strong, successful woman as a leader.
The opinions expressed in the article do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Al Jazeera Network.
