“Come on, man up!” 

Most male athletes have heard this line since they were young. It’s not only deeply sexist, as it implies that perseverance is a “masculine” quality, but it also imparts dangerous expectations of toxic masculinity onto boys. The pressure of “manning up” when in pain prevents many boys from sharing their vulnerability, as they are afraid that others will label them as “weak,” “feminine,” or “gay.”

Instead of expressing their emotions, boys often resort to exerting toxic masculinity, which includes the participation in dangerous, competitive actions and the degradation of women in order to appear masculine.

In schools including Riverdale, toxic masculinity is often perpetuated in sports, an integral part of school culture. Boys can sometimes take advantage of the seclusion and lack of adult supervision in their locker rooms to exert unhealthy masculinity. 

Boys’ locker rooms are often loud and rowdy, which can lead to hyper-aggression and physical harm as boys push each other past healthy limits on the field and other facilities. This aggression in locker rooms is especially prevalent in sports that require more physical contact, such as football and basketball. Riverdale Athletic Trainer Mr. Michael Powers adds, “Locker room talk silences the people that want to be upstanders and speak out [against toxic masculinity].” 

Unfortunately, similar to the boys’ locker rooms, practices, buses, team dinners, and other private, homosocial spaces can also foster unhealthy masculinity in sports. Implicitly recognizing that their actions are wrong, boys are less likely to exert toxic masculinity in public areas due to the social oversight of faculty and non-male people. The toxic environment perpetuated in off-the-field interactions with teammates continues in live games. Male athletes may sometimes suppress their injuries and feelings of pain during games to refrain from being seen as weak, especially with many of their peers watching them. 

For instance, varsity soccer player and ninth-grader Ben Reich suffered a hairline fracture in his ankle before the start of the soccer season. He decided to play in the first playoff game despite not feeling fully recovered, saying that “a lot of people were watching.”

Although his decision may have been impacted by a personal ambition to excel in sports, Reich describes that he felt pressured to remain tough, preventing him from sharing much vulnerability about his pain with the team and coaches despite their continuous care for his well-being. 

Reich’s experience underscores how toxic masculinity not only has real psychological consequences, but also threatens the physical health of male athletes. Now, the fact that Reich felt supported throughout his recovery process by his male teammates suggests that there is hope for the destigmatization of sharing emotions among boys, an essential step towards dismantling a cycle of unhealthy masculinity.

Aside from its detrimental impacts on men, toxic masculinity also fuels the continued oppression of women, since one of its defining characteristics is asserting male superiority. Institutionally, sexism in sports is obvious, given the lack of attention, equipment, and facilities female teams receive compared to male ones. However, on a more individual level, toxic masculinity can perpetuate misogyny through boys’ degradation of the athletic ability of female players. 

For instance, cross-country runner and senior Estelle Anderson recalled, “During one Varsity Awards Night, I remember one of my coaches (he is not at Riverdale anymore) praised all of the male seniors for their performances, but when he got to honoring the female seniors, he focused more on their ‘potential.’”

Although many boys at Riverdale may not exert or perpetuate unhealthy forms of masculinity, it is clear from the experiences of Reich and Anderson that toxic masculinity is still prevalent in Riverdale sports and culture. 

To help end this cycle, Athletic Trainer Ms. Katie Gendron believes that the Riverdale community needs to start “holding boys and men accountable with their actions.”

To fulfill this expectation of accountability, male athletes, coaches, and faculty leaders must ensure that they are enforcing healthy masculinity and anti-sexist principles, especially in private spaces like locker rooms. 

Michael Kimmel, author of Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men, which examines boys’ experience with navigating manhood, suggests that communities must foster an environment where boys can “[feel] loved and supported, nurtured and safe” to encourage them to share vulnerability and their experiences. 

Boys struggling with issues related to masculinity can also join the affinity group Boys Leading Boys. With the help of faculty advisor Mr. Mike Powers, seniors Chaz Collins and Will Jenkins lead the club in essential conversations about sexual assault, consent, and healthy masculinity.