Some men are insisting Dr. Jill Biden should stop using her title "Dr."
Let's get to the heart of the matter, shall we? --
Why Some Men Still Fear a Wife Who Earns More--
Men, traumatized in our bullying man box culture are “equality illiterate.” https://medium.com/remaking-manhood/why-some-men-still-fear-a-wife-who-earns-more-e4f2ce677ab?source=friends_link&sk=2a58cdaa8d2d9d50a9763e5f954041a8

THREAD: Why are some men uncomfortable with a partner who earns more or has a higher level of education? I mean, that’s more economic stability and resources for the family, right? /2

Man box culture has conditioned generations of men to see themselves as providers, not care-givers. This central frame of man box masculinity falters if women earn more and, even worse, start demanding equal effort from men in housework and care giving for children. /3

This “men as breadwinners” frame, born at the turn of the last century when the industrial revolution shifted men away from the farm and onto the factory floor, cut men off from home life, re-defining what had been shared work, as women’s work. /4

When men had control of all economic resources and spending, the level of their power in the family was absolute. In this way, women, who were not allowed to earn, were at the mercy of their husband’s benevolence, accepting whatever level of fidelity or compassion was offered. /5

Fast forward a few generations and women, who globally have come to quite rightfully associate education with personal freedom and autonomy, are pursuing education as a way to insure they do not fall prey to men’s assumptions of authority. /6

Meanwhile, the “men as breadwinner” frame, which still underpins our dominant culture of masculinity, means that men, consciously or unconsciously, associate care giving and housework with a submissive status. /7

Which is why working women struggle to this day with getting husbands to do their fair share of house work. Thankfully, men’s need to rely on archaic symbols of masculine dominance is beginning to decline. /8

Many men are able to thrive in relationships in which we are not as economically powerful as our wives. Many of us are happy to support our professional spouses by taking up house work and child care. /9

I have a bachelor’s degree. My partner, Dr. Saliha Bava ( @thinkplay) has a PhD. Her achievements are a source of pride for our family. Her earned privilege in the world is well deserved. She is the primary bread winner in our family and the source of our financial stability. /10

But this kind of educational and economic power imbalance is still seen as stigmatizing for men in our masculine culture. Men who have less earning power, who face unemployment, who are less educated, face the cultural stigma that they are failing to be “the breadwinner.” /11

Contrast that with the vocal pride of the stay at home dad movement in which fathers are primary care givers. The level of pride and productivity, celebrated by stay at home dads in the millions, is an option for any man who might choose that exhausting and rewarding work. /12