Artistic director of theatre company Pangdemonium Adrian Pang took part in last year’s White Ribbon campaign, which calls on men and boys to help put an end to violence against women and girls.
Feminism doesn’t just affect women. These male celebrities have been vocal in their stand as allies in the fight for equality. Love!
Artistic director of theatre company Pangdemonium Adrian Pang took part in last year’s White Ribbon campaign, which calls on men and boys to help put an end to violence against women and girls.
Her World (HW): What motivated you to support the White Ribbon campaign?
Adrian Pang (AP): As a father of two boys, and the husband of a very strong, independent and smart woman, I have always felt deeply that all men have a duty to stand by women and their rights, to fight alongside them, as co-defenders and co-protectors of everything they stand for.
HW: So many people are still afraid of the whole concept of feminism…
AP: I think it’s because of the perception that feminism means “man-bashing” or/and “manhating”, and the confrontational antagonism that they associate with it puts them off .
HW: But what does being a feminist mean to you?
AP: Very simply, equal rights for women and men.
HW: How do you think men can help as allies in stamping out sexism in Singapore?
AP: I feel it starts from every man realising how evil sexism is, and propagating equal rights for women among their immediate family and social circle. I make it a point to address “harmless” instances of sexism that creep up on a daily basis in seemingly innocent situations, like when a car sales rep made the remark “some people find it difficult to start the car on a slope without the car rolling backwards, especially women…” while explaining the features of a car my wife and I were looking at – I got out of the car and let her demonstrate how to do it. Naturally, he didn’t make the sale. The scourge of sexual inequality throughout history in different contexts should also be taught in schools, and the practice of equality propagated in the workplace, and ingrained in every aspect of our community.
HW: People also often dismiss aggressive male behaviour with “boys will be boys”. How can we help to change that narrative?
AP: That BS belongs to the Dark Ages, and it is the responsibility of every father to change that perception in their children. Personally, I encourage my two boys to resolve issues by clearheaded discussion rather than aggression or any kind of primitive male posturing.
Catch Adrian Pang in The Effect, a romantic comedy-drama about two people who fall in love during a clinical drug trial, from Feb 25 to March 13, at Victoria Theatre. For more information, visit www.pangdemonium.com/productions/the-effect.
TV host Stephen Colbert, whose feminist op-ed in Glamour last year was full of hilariously sarcastic and relevant modern anecdotes
“Even when women do succeed, their stories often aren’t told. Did you know that the first computer, ENIAC, was programmed by six female mathematicians? If it weren’t for those pioneering women, we might not have computers at all. And then how would people read empowering listicles like ‘20 Hot Actresses Without Makeup (#5 Will Make You Question God!)’?”
How to Get Away with Murder star Matt McGorry, who eloquently summed up why feminism benefits men too
“I was taught that my insecurities, my fears, and my hurt were best shared with the people around me, rather than locked away in a box built of faux toughness. Unfortunately, I don’t know that most men were taught these same beliefs. And this is part of the flip side of feminism and gender equality that benefits men as well as women: The notion of men being ‘strong’ and therefore unable to admit to having ‘weaker’ emotions is incredibly damaging.”
Daniel Radcliffe, on what he thinks of anti-feminists
“I’m a feminist as much as I’m an egalitarian about everything, and I believe in meritocracy. I think anyone who isn’t [a feminist] at this point is just swimming against the tide just like people who are vaguely homophobic or racist or sexist or whatever it is. I just think, ‘You’re still keeping that up? Give it up, you’ve lost’.”
Mark Ruffalo, and his fierce response to an Internet movement in which women rejected feminism
“You know not what you speak of. You reap the rewards of these [feminists’] sacrifices every day of your life. You ignorantly spit on the sacred struggle of the past 200 years. You bite the hand that has fed you freedom, safety, and a voice. In short, kiss my a**, you ignorant little jerks.”
Brooklyn Nine-Nine actor Terry Crews, on why it’s important to reject the notion of traditional gender roles
“We have to embrace duality. When you’re in touch with that feminine side, you can empathise, along with having the strength. When you’re too manly, there’s no grace, there’s no empathy. It’s all judgment. When you embrace either side of who you are, it makes you a really whole, wonderful person.”
