Book Review: Not Guilty: The Case in Defense of Men
Not Guilty: The Case in Defense of Men
, by David Thomas; William Morrow, New York 1993
book review by Dr. Malcolm George, London, UK
No Fear of Political Correctness
1994 London, UK - Not Guilty: The Case in Defense of Men by David Thomas was one of a three books published by male authors in 1993/4 in the UK that challenged social perceptions and the political ideology of gender inequality in present day society.
Along with Warren Farrell (The Myth of Male Power
) and Neil Lydon (No More Sex War
) Mr. Thomas has, to paraphrase his own words, written a book in which the fear of political correctness does not run like the red stripe through a tube of toothpaste!
With all the craft of the attorney at the top of his profession Mr. Thomas savagely examines the prosecution case and presents his defense to appeal to both the juries intellect and their emotions. The defense offered is no apology for the evil some men do in society. Quite the contrary, it is a forthright condemnation; but it asks even more serious questions of the way society views these evils and projects them upon all men and masculinity.
Is the evil some men do inherent in masculinity or really a dysfunction of masculinity?. Or is it just that the portrayal of masculinity in society goes no further than what captures the box office recites, media headlines or the political agenda?. Has society become blind to any construct of men or masculinity that differs from this view?. Is the inequality, suffering and victimisation men experience in their lives denied?. Is the debate over equality between the sexes distorted? Does current political wisdom reinforce the stereotypes of men and women rather than break them down?
Demolishing the Demonology Surrounding Men
Mr. Thomas, a past editor of the magazine Punch, examines all the difficult cases with astute observation, careful research and thought provoking analysis. Date rape, sexual harassment, domestic violence and child abuse are just a few of the issues that are tackled head on. By analysing everything from learned journals to newspaper clippings Mr. Thomas demolishes the perceptions of demonology surrounding men.
An example are the figures provided by the American Association for Protecting Children for 1986 that report males were responsible for 46.7% of all confirmed child abuse cases. Or to put it the way Mr. Thomas would state them 'Is it the Man in the Moon that was responsible for 53.3% of these cases?!'. Or to run it past you just one more time; 53.3% of child abuse for that year was committed by women!. Is this the way child abuse is reported in the Boston Globe, New York Times or TV channels?
To complete his analysis both 'prosecution' and 'defense' witnesses are deftly cross examined. Under this scrutiny more than one prosecution witness inadvertently provides exactly the kind of evidence needed by the defense! Did the lady organiser of an abuse programme for men, who considers it completely normal and acceptable to hit her boyfriend but a crime if he should retaliate, have any comprehension of the injustice of her double standard!.
The witnesses assembled for the defense contain some familiar names, as well as some surprise testimony. The venerated family therapist Dr. Robin Skynner (author of Families and How to Survive Them) echoes a theme developed by Mr. Thomas: Men should stand up for themselves and campaign on the issues where they face discrimination. Erin Pizzey, the pioneering campaigner of the women's refuge movement, observes that there are as many violent women as violent men and there are lots of dollars in hating men.
In short, this is a book written with a passionate belief that inequalities are faced both by women and men and that moves to a more egalitarian society, in which men and women are equally valued, cannot be achieved merely by making men the repositories of all that is wrong and evil in society. It says what many men and women are thinking, but fear to say. It is a book for the Nineties that most men need to read and all women should read.
