Is it unmanly to wear a mask? Journalist and attorney Marian Lindberg, author of the new book Scandal on Plum Island, has written an article (see attached) exploring this question and its implications for the fight to control the spread of Coronavirus in the US and around the world.
Masculinity and manliness have deep roots in the US political sphere and its rhetoric, from war hawks like Teddy Roosevelt to lesser-known politicians urging America to “assert its manliness” (Sen. William M. Stewart, R, Nev., in 1897). Lindberg’s article examines these roots and connects them to the current pandemic response.
With Trump and other male US leaders inserting coded manliness concerns into the COVID-19 debate–including around mask-wearing–Lindberg suggests that the success of countries with female leaders like New Zealand, Germany, and Taiwan in fighting the virus might be related to the fact that as women, these leaders do not carry the baggage of worrying about their manliness. They are free to respond to a major problem dispassionately, based on “sober judgment” and without regard to bravado.
