where legends are made

Katie Harper – Researched Argument

  • July 25th, 2022

In December of 2020, a huge smile wiped across my face as I saw Harry Styles posed on the cover of Vogue in an astounding light blue ballgown with ruffles that made him appear dainty while holding his facial expression in a way that exuded the most tremendous strength. It was nothing short of breathtaking. My heart could’ve burst with pride in that moment. My lifelong hero was conquering his fears and standing in solitary against toxic masculinity.

I opened my Instagram to repost his photo onto my page and was quickly swarmed with posts from other content creators bashing Harry for his photoshoot. Candace Owens seemed to be the main “leader” of what many called the Manly Men Movement. This disgusting attempt of a movement was aimed to bring Harry down for posing in women’s clothing, saying, “there is no society that can survive without strong men. I was outraged as I read these comments and couldn’t help but express my concern to my friends. Chills ran down my body, shocked, as I heard them all agree with the hateful comments. My worst fears were coming true as my friends all made derogatory comments towards him and his choice of style. They asked me questions like “eww why is he wearing that?”; “isn’t he gay?”, “why would you like that?”. I could feel a lump in my throat grow as I held back tears. I thought I knew these people but clearly, their core values did not align with mine.

I then began to ponder about all the times when I have seen men be treated this way and realized what a huge problem it is. Young boys are being conditioned to grow up in a manner where they are deemed masculine or manly. These are the types of boys who grow up to have anger issues, misogynistic tendencies, and homophobia. They are taught that boys must be big and strong, and they must never show signs of weakness or femininity.

A huge problem within our country regarding gender norms and homophobia, is the fact that homosexual men are being labeled as non-masculine and that is still largely deprecated by heterosexual men and women. Even if the association of being gay with certain traits and masculinity with certain traits is wrong, many men have suffered under that pressure. Homophobia and toxic masculinity negatively impact men’s mental health as they express themselves in ways that defy gender norms, but support from family, friends, and public figures can help counteract the effects of these issues.

One possible culprit for these crises of identity and the inability to explore them healthily is the continued presence of gender roles. Gender roles refer to the role or behavior learned by a person as appropriate to their gender, determined by the prevailing cultural norms. These roles are largely influenced by the culture of their state, country, or world, but it can also be affected by the culture and teachings within their family unit. In American culture, men’s expectations favor strength and are negative towards emotion. While gender-roles have limitations and struggles for both genders, “gender-role violations are perceived more negatively when committed by a man rather than by a woman” (Falmoir-Pichastor et. al 2019), and this is what leads to the aggressive expectation for men not to show any feminine traits.

These expectations lead many people into identity crises over who they are as a person, as well as issues with sexuality. According to Falomir-Pichastor and colleagues “a great deal of research has repeatedly shown that men have more negative attitudes toward sexual minorities than do women, as well as toward gay men in particular” and along with this form of discrimination comes “men’s renunciation of the feminine” or “the anti-femininity norm” (Falmoir-Pichastor et. al 2019). Being forced into labelling oneself from a very young age, with bullying often starting as early as elementary school, can be a complicated experience for young people that leads them to ignore their feelings. Tyler Lech writes in an essay about his experience as a young boy showing feminine traits that he “was eight years old when I started learning cursive penmanship at my elementary school and I was thrilled because I finally got to learn to write like my grandma,” but in 5th grade he was the subject of bullying, being told by boys that he “writes like a girl.” He continues to explain that “other boys in my class effeminately categorized everything about me, and…it wasn’t because they admired certain qualities of girls” (Leher 2018). Being pushed into these kind of forced identities makes young boys scared to explore their identity and leads to severe emotional issues and higher suicide rates later on.

Pressure from gender role expectations as well as bullying for perceived or actual sexuality has a significant influence on men’s mental health. A 2009 study found that LGBT youth who experienced rejection or pressure from their families were “8 times more likely to have tried to commit suicide, 6 times more likely to report high levels of depression, 3 times more likely to use illegal drugs, and 3 times more likely to have risky sex” (CDC 2016) than LGBT youth who have supportive families. Similar results are true for young men who are bullied in school. Another issue with toxic masculinity is that it discourages expression of emotions, so many men do not come forward to get help for these struggles. Chien-Chuan Wang found in his research that “victims of both traditional and cyber homophobic bullying had not only more severe depression, anxiety, and physical pain than nonvictims but also more severe anxiety” (Wang 2018). This shows a clear and definable danger associated with toxic masculinity and homophobia and proves that it is an issue that should be taken seriously.

Some may argue that gender roles are natural or that overall, their effect on men is not negative. According to the CDC, issues associated with homophobia can “affect your income, whether you can get or keep a job, your ability to get and keep health insurance, limit your access to high quality health care that is responsive to your health issues, add to poor mental health and poor coping skills, such as substance abuse, risky sexual behaviors, and suicide attempts, affect your ability to have and maintain long-term same-sex relationships that lower your chances of getting HIV & STDs, and make it harder for you to be open about your sexual orientation, which can increase stress, limit social support, and negatively affect your health” (CDC 2016). Alongside this, there are the mental health issues I mentioned previously. Also, according to Priess and colleagues’ research on the development of gender identity, “girls and boys did not differ in masculinity” (Priess et. al 2014) to a significant degree in their longitudinal study from the ages of 11 and 15. Levels of femininity in boys also only began to drop around the age of elementary school, which corresponds to when social pressure gets stronger. One can also look at the evidence of there historically being men and women who dressed in clothes associated with the opposite gender and acted in ways typically associated with the opposite gender, even when there was fear of ostracization and repercussions for said actions. With that in mind, who knows how many others also would have displayed these traits had they felt safer to do so? This shows clearly that at least some people will naturally wish to express themselves in ways that differ from their gender identity even in a time when the opposite is the norm. With both of these in mind, we can draw the conclusion that the issue of toxic masculinity is so incredibly prevalent in our society today and has a strong negative effect on people.

The escape for many people whose family or friends support traditional gender roles and homophobia comes in the form of celebrities. There are many celebrities today that are openly part of the LGBT community as well as those who are not LGBT but don’t follow traditional gender roles. This not only makes struggling young people feel seen, but also helps change the cultural opinion on gender roles. If popular celebrities do things like showing emotion or dressing outside the limits of their gender roles it will help normalize it as not as much of a shock when everyday people do the same. Some celebrities who are very helpful in this way are Lil Nas X, Harry Styles, and Timothee Chalamet.

Lil Nas X came out as gay after his song “Old Town Road” became popular. He explained in an interview that he considered not coming out, but did so because he wanted to give hope to young black men in the LGBT community and an example of someone being able to live in the open. LGBT people of color are often subject to multiple levels of discrimination, but having stars like Lil Nas prepared to defend their sexuality and show themselves being happy living their truth helps society adjust to be more accommodating for others like him. The performer explains that “’cause me being in this position, like, it’s easy for me. But, like, some little boy 10 miles from here…it’s not gonna be good for him” (CBS  2019). This bravery from people in a position to be slightly less affected by the harms of discrimination and bullying is part of what helps make things easier for boys today.

Harry Styles does not like to openly label his sexuality, but preaches that sexuality and gender expression is personal and should not be judged by others. One important factor for his representation value is that Styles grew up in the public eye during a time where free expression was not as well-accepted. He and his bandmates in One Direction were given very strict guidelines on how to dress and act in order to maximize the potential for young female fans to picture themselves in relationships with them. There are videos from his time in the boy band where he is reluctant to do things like paint his nails. Towards the end of his time in the band and now as a solo artist, however, he has begun to express himself through fashion in more open ways as well as discuss his sexuality. He speaks out in favor of the LGBT community publicly and is very supportive during live concerts, in which he dances with LGBT flags, wears gender-fluid styles, and has helped several fans come out who had signs requesting him to do so. While he has not specifically stated his sexuality, lyrics in his unreleased song “Medicine” that he often plays live, state that “The boys and the girls are here / I mess around with him / and I’m OK with it”. Through this public pride after many years of being limited, he has often been described by fans as a “safe place” and an encouragement to be themselves.

Timothee Chalamet has also not publicly addressed his sexuality, and has only publicly dated women in the past, but he does not confirm or deny what his sexuality is. However, this may be equally important to representation like that of Lil Nas. This is because Timothee dresses in a very gender-fluid way and is open about emotions, which shows that it is not only LGBT men that can do those things. This way, we can hopefully get closer to men being able to express themselves the way they would like without it automatically leading into a question about their sexuality.

These three celebrities, among many others, have been a strong influence for change in how LGBT groups are perceived as well as a source of support and validation for many individuals. A fifteen-year-old fan of Harry Styles stated that “hearing your idol sing about your people means more than you can imagine” and “there are not many male bisexual celebrities, so people think bi boys don’t exist, but they do” (The Guardian 2018). The representation that these men offer allows a source of validation for people all over the world who relate to them, and acts as a level of defense for them in being who they are. They can point to successful and respected celebrities and say, “they are like me,” which has immeasurable value. Lil Nas mentions in an interview about coming out that there are still issues because people assume “you’re gay, ’cause you’re listening to him” (CBS 2019) in regard to fans of his music. This supports the previous idea that even though society is more accepting, there is still a pressure for gay people to be one way and straight people to never have anything in common with that group.

Another important source of support for young men is their families. While it is a support not everyone gets, it is the most influential for many people. This can be support from families or siblings, as well as close extended family. According to the CDC, “around 40% of homeless youth are LGBT” (CDC 2016), mainly because of being kicked out by or running away because of homophobic family members. Support from family can also help give children a safe space in which to explore their identity, better equipping them to cope with bullying later on should it occur. Wang’s research supports this, finding that “participants with low family support in childhood had more severe depression (p<0.001), anxiety (p<0.001), and physical pain (p=0.019) than those with high family support.” Family is the child’s source for stability and understanding of what is right and wrong, and that influence can make a lot of difference in the effects of bullying later on.

Another important influence is that of friends, whether that be people met in school, the workplace, or other outside sources. According to Wang, multiple studies have found that “improved friendship quality mediates the association between homophobic harassment and depression” (Wang 2018).  Lehner also mentions that being able to make friends that supported him in college directly related to his improved mental health and ability to come out as gay. For those who do not have support of family, friends can make up a “found family” and help provide social support that validates the person’s identity.

While the ideal is the end of the pressure to be hypermasculine, there are resources for help and sources of support. In an essay by Tyler Lehner about his childhood being bullied for having feminine traits and his later recovery from that, he mentions several such sources. One dramatic change he notes was being “finally able to maintain friends based on similarities and qualities that I actually liked and enjoyed” (Lehner 2018). Some other changes he mentions are listening to the music he enjoys and mentally asserting his own freedom. If it is not possible for young men to make new friends yet, they can find solace in trusted adults or simply in people in the public eye that they relate to.

There is hope for the future if more people gain awareness and become advocates for free expression and the acceptance of all sexualities not only by simply being neutral, but instead being in support of all of the many different ways sexuality can be expressed. With increased awareness of the struggles of homophobic bullying and toxic masculinity, allies should maintain awareness and search for possible sources of harm, then be a force against that, whether it be arguing in support of LGBT youth and men with feminine traits or providing support to people within that group. In Lehner’s words “if the pressure to exhibit pure masculinity wasn’t so strong, boys would have the ability to creatively express themselves, encouraging them to be open-minded, innovative humans” (Lehner 2018). Together, we can be part of what creates that world.

 

CBS Interactive. (2019, September 30). Lil Nas X opens up about the difficulties of coming out:

“we still have a long way to go”. CBS News. Retrieved October 28, 2021, from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lil-nas-x-interview-gayle-king-the-difficulties-of-coming-out-we-still-have-a-long-way-to-go-today-2019-09-30/.

Falomir-Pichastor, Juan Manuel, et al. “Perceived Men’s Feminization and Attitudes Toward Homosexuality: Heterosexual Men’s Reactions to the Decline of the Anti-Femininity Norm of Masculinity.” Sex Roles, vol. 81, no. 3/4, Aug. 2019, pp. 208–222. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1007/s11199-018-0985-6. Accessed 4 March 2021.

Lehner, Tyler. “Hypermasculinity Is Toxic: My Story of Being Bullied for Being Different.” Thought Catalog, 14 Aug. 2016, https://thoughtcatalog.com/tyler-lehner/2016/08/hypermasculinity-is-toxic-my-story-of-being-bullied-for-being-different/.

Priess, Heather A, et al. “Adolescent Gender-Role Identity and Mental Health: Gender Intensification Revisited.” Child Development, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2009, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4244905/.

“Stigma and Discrimination Affects Gay and Bisexual Men’s Health.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 29 Feb. 2016, www.cdc.gov/msmhealth/stigma-and-discrimination.htm.

“Two Directions: Why Harry Styles’ New Song Is a Breakthrough for Bisexual Music Fans.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 22 Mar. 2018, www.theguardian.com/music/2018/mar/22/both-directions-why-harry-styles-new-song-is-a-breakthrough-for-bisexual-music-fans.

Wang, Chien-Chuan, et al. “Effects of Traditional and Cyber Homophobic Bullying in Childhood on Depression, Anxiety, and Physical Pain in EMERGING Adulthood and the Moderating Effects of Social Support among Gay and Bisexual Men in Taiwan.” Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, Dove Medical Press, 22 May 2018, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5973463/.

Categories: Uncategorized

Katie Harper – Researched Argument

  • July 25th, 2022

In December of 2020, a huge smile wiped across my face as I saw Harry Styles posed on the cover of Vogue in an astounding light blue ballgown with ruffles that made him appear dainty while holding his facial expression in a way that exuded the most tremendous strength. It was nothing short of breathtaking. My heart could’ve burst with pride in that moment. My lifelong hero was conquering his fears and standing in solitary against toxic masculinity.

I opened my Instagram to repost his photo onto my page and was quickly swarmed with posts from other content creators bashing Harry for his photoshoot. Candace Owens seemed to be the main “leader” of what many called the Manly Men Movement. This disgusting attempt of a movement was aimed to bring Harry down for posing in women’s clothing, saying, “there is no society that can survive without strong men. I was outraged as I read these comments and couldn’t help but express my concern to my friends. Chills ran down my body, shocked, as I heard them all agree with the hateful comments. My worst fears were coming true as my friends all made derogatory comments towards him and his choice of style. They asked me questions like “eww why is he wearing that?”; “isn’t he gay?”, “why would you like that?”. I could feel a lump in my throat grow as I held back tears. I thought I knew these people but clearly, their core values did not align with mine.

I then began to ponder about all the times when I have seen men be treated this way and realized what a huge problem it is. Young boys are being conditioned to grow up in a manner where they are deemed masculine or manly. These are the types of boys who grow up to have anger issues, misogynistic tendencies, and homophobia. They are taught that boys must be big and strong, and they must never show signs of weakness or femininity.

A huge problem within our country regarding gender norms and homophobia, is the fact that homosexual men are being labeled as non-masculine and that is still largely deprecated by heterosexual men and women. Even if the association of being gay with certain traits and masculinity with certain traits is wrong, many men have suffered under that pressure. Homophobia and toxic masculinity negatively impact men’s mental health as they express themselves in ways that defy gender norms, but support from family, friends, and public figures can help counteract the effects of these issues.

One possible culprit for these crises of identity and the inability to explore them healthily is the continued presence of gender roles. Gender roles refer to the role or behavior learned by a person as appropriate to their gender, determined by the prevailing cultural norms. These roles are largely influenced by the culture of their state, country, or world, but it can also be affected by the culture and teachings within their family unit. In American culture, men’s expectations favor strength and are negative towards emotion. While gender-roles have limitations and struggles for both genders, “gender-role violations are perceived more negatively when committed by a man rather than by a woman” (Falmoir-Pichastor et. al 2019), and this is what leads to the aggressive expectation for men not to show any feminine traits.

These expectations lead many people into identity crises over who they are as a person, as well as issues with sexuality. According to Falomir-Pichastor and colleagues “a great deal of research has repeatedly shown that men have more negative attitudes toward sexual minorities than do women, as well as toward gay men in particular” and along with this form of discrimination comes “men’s renunciation of the feminine” or “the anti-femininity norm” (Falmoir-Pichastor et. al 2019). Being forced into labelling oneself from a very young age, with bullying often starting as early as elementary school, can be a complicated experience for young people that leads them to ignore their feelings. Tyler Lech writes in an essay about his experience as a young boy showing feminine traits that he “was eight years old when I started learning cursive penmanship at my elementary school and I was thrilled because I finally got to learn to write like my grandma,” but in 5th grade he was the subject of bullying, being told by boys that he “writes like a girl.” He continues to explain that “other boys in my class effeminately categorized everything about me, and…it wasn’t because they admired certain qualities of girls” (Leher 2018). Being pushed into these kind of forced identities makes young boys scared to explore their identity and leads to severe emotional issues and higher suicide rates later on.

Pressure from gender role expectations as well as bullying for perceived or actual sexuality has a significant influence on men’s mental health. A 2009 study found that LGBT youth who experienced rejection or pressure from their families were “8 times more likely to have tried to commit suicide, 6 times more likely to report high levels of depression, 3 times more likely to use illegal drugs, and 3 times more likely to have risky sex” (CDC 2016) than LGBT youth who have supportive families. Similar results are true for young men who are bullied in school. Another issue with toxic masculinity is that it discourages expression of emotions, so many men do not come forward to get help for these struggles. Chien-Chuan Wang found in his research that “victims of both traditional and cyber homophobic bullying had not only more severe depression, anxiety, and physical pain than nonvictims but also more severe anxiety” (Wang 2018). This shows a clear and definable danger associated with toxic masculinity and homophobia and proves that it is an issue that should be taken seriously.

Some may argue that gender roles are natural or that overall, their effect on men is not negative. According to the CDC, issues associated with homophobia can “affect your income, whether you can get or keep a job, your ability to get and keep health insurance, limit your access to high quality health care that is responsive to your health issues, add to poor mental health and poor coping skills, such as substance abuse, risky sexual behaviors, and suicide attempts, affect your ability to have and maintain long-term same-sex relationships that lower your chances of getting HIV & STDs, and make it harder for you to be open about your sexual orientation, which can increase stress, limit social support, and negatively affect your health” (CDC 2016). Alongside this, there are the mental health issues I mentioned previously. Also, according to Priess and colleagues’ research on the development of gender identity, “girls and boys did not differ in masculinity” (Priess et. al 2014) to a significant degree in their longitudinal study from the ages of 11 and 15. Levels of femininity in boys also only began to drop around the age of elementary school, which corresponds to when social pressure gets stronger. One can also look at the evidence of there historically being men and women who dressed in clothes associated with the opposite gender and acted in ways typically associated with the opposite gender, even when there was fear of ostracization and repercussions for said actions. With that in mind, who knows how many others also would have displayed these traits had they felt safer to do so? This shows clearly that at least some people will naturally wish to express themselves in ways that differ from their gender identity even in a time when the opposite is the norm. With both of these in mind, we can draw the conclusion that the issue of toxic masculinity is so incredibly prevalent in our society today and has a strong negative effect on people.

The escape for many people whose family or friends support traditional gender roles and homophobia comes in the form of celebrities. There are many celebrities today that are openly part of the LGBT community as well as those who are not LGBT but don’t follow traditional gender roles. This not only makes struggling young people feel seen, but also helps change the cultural opinion on gender roles. If popular celebrities do things like showing emotion or dressing outside the limits of their gender roles it will help normalize it as not as much of a shock when everyday people do the same. Some celebrities who are very helpful in this way are Lil Nas X, Harry Styles, and Timothee Chalamet.

Lil Nas X came out as gay after his song “Old Town Road” became popular. He explained in an interview that he considered not coming out, but did so because he wanted to give hope to young black men in the LGBT community and an example of someone being able to live in the open. LGBT people of color are often subject to multiple levels of discrimination, but having stars like Lil Nas prepared to defend their sexuality and show themselves being happy living their truth helps society adjust to be more accommodating for others like him. The performer explains that “’cause me being in this position, like, it’s easy for me. But, like, some little boy 10 miles from here…it’s not gonna be good for him” (CBS  2019). This bravery from people in a position to be slightly less affected by the harms of discrimination and bullying is part of what helps make things easier for boys today.

Harry Styles does not like to openly label his sexuality, but preaches that sexuality and gender expression is personal and should not be judged by others. One important factor for his representation value is that Styles grew up in the public eye during a time where free expression was not as well-accepted. He and his bandmates in One Direction were given very strict guidelines on how to dress and act in order to maximize the potential for young female fans to picture themselves in relationships with them. There are videos from his time in the boy band where he is reluctant to do things like paint his nails. Towards the end of his time in the band and now as a solo artist, however, he has begun to express himself through fashion in more open ways as well as discuss his sexuality. He speaks out in favor of the LGBT community publicly and is very supportive during live concerts, in which he dances with LGBT flags, wears gender-fluid styles, and has helped several fans come out who had signs requesting him to do so. While he has not specifically stated his sexuality, lyrics in his unreleased song “Medicine” that he often plays live, state that “The boys and the girls are here / I mess around with him / and I’m OK with it”. Through this public pride after many years of being limited, he has often been described by fans as a “safe place” and an encouragement to be themselves.

Timothee Chalamet has also not publicly addressed his sexuality, and has only publicly dated women in the past, but he does not confirm or deny what his sexuality is. However, this may be equally important to representation like that of Lil Nas. This is because Timothee dresses in a very gender-fluid way and is open about emotions, which shows that it is not only LGBT men that can do those things. This way, we can hopefully get closer to men being able to express themselves the way they would like without it automatically leading into a question about their sexuality.

These three celebrities, among many others, have been a strong influence for change in how LGBT groups are perceived as well as a source of support and validation for many individuals. A fifteen-year-old fan of Harry Styles stated that “hearing your idol sing about your people means more than you can imagine” and “there are not many male bisexual celebrities, so people think bi boys don’t exist, but they do” (The Guardian 2018). The representation that these men offer allows a source of validation for people all over the world who relate to them, and acts as a level of defense for them in being who they are. They can point to successful and respected celebrities and say, “they are like me,” which has immeasurable value. Lil Nas mentions in an interview about coming out that there are still issues because people assume “you’re gay, ’cause you’re listening to him” (CBS 2019) in regard to fans of his music. This supports the previous idea that even though society is more accepting, there is still a pressure for gay people to be one way and straight people to never have anything in common with that group.

Another important source of support for young men is their families. While it is a support not everyone gets, it is the most influential for many people. This can be support from families or siblings, as well as close extended family. According to the CDC, “around 40% of homeless youth are LGBT” (CDC 2016), mainly because of being kicked out by or running away because of homophobic family members. Support from family can also help give children a safe space in which to explore their identity, better equipping them to cope with bullying later on should it occur. Wang’s research supports this, finding that “participants with low family support in childhood had more severe depression (p<0.001), anxiety (p<0.001), and physical pain (p=0.019) than those with high family support.” Family is the child’s source for stability and understanding of what is right and wrong, and that influence can make a lot of difference in the effects of bullying later on.

Another important influence is that of friends, whether that be people met in school, the workplace, or other outside sources. According to Wang, multiple studies have found that “improved friendship quality mediates the association between homophobic harassment and depression” (Wang 2018).  Lehner also mentions that being able to make friends that supported him in college directly related to his improved mental health and ability to come out as gay. For those who do not have support of family, friends can make up a “found family” and help provide social support that validates the person’s identity.

While the ideal is the end of the pressure to be hypermasculine, there are resources for help and sources of support. In an essay by Tyler Lehner about his childhood being bullied for having feminine traits and his later recovery from that, he mentions several such sources. One dramatic change he notes was being “finally able to maintain friends based on similarities and qualities that I actually liked and enjoyed” (Lehner 2018). Some other changes he mentions are listening to the music he enjoys and mentally asserting his own freedom. If it is not possible for young men to make new friends yet, they can find solace in trusted adults or simply in people in the public eye that they relate to.

There is hope for the future if more people gain awareness and become advocates for free expression and the acceptance of all sexualities not only by simply being neutral, but instead being in support of all of the many different ways sexuality can be expressed. With increased awareness of the struggles of homophobic bullying and toxic masculinity, allies should maintain awareness and search for possible sources of harm, then be a force against that, whether it be arguing in support of LGBT youth and men with feminine traits or providing support to people within that group. In Lehner’s words “if the pressure to exhibit pure masculinity wasn’t so strong, boys would have the ability to creatively express themselves, encouraging them to be open-minded, innovative humans” (Lehner 2018). Together, we can be part of what creates that world.

 

CBS Interactive. (2019, September 30). Lil Nas X opens up about the difficulties of coming out:

“we still have a long way to go”. CBS News. Retrieved October 28, 2021, from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lil-nas-x-interview-gayle-king-the-difficulties-of-coming-out-we-still-have-a-long-way-to-go-today-2019-09-30/.

Falomir-Pichastor, Juan Manuel, et al. “Perceived Men’s Feminization and Attitudes Toward Homosexuality: Heterosexual Men’s Reactions to the Decline of the Anti-Femininity Norm of Masculinity.” Sex Roles, vol. 81, no. 3/4, Aug. 2019, pp. 208–222. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1007/s11199-018-0985-6. Accessed 4 March 2021.

Lehner, Tyler. “Hypermasculinity Is Toxic: My Story of Being Bullied for Being Different.” Thought Catalog, 14 Aug. 2016, https://thoughtcatalog.com/tyler-lehner/2016/08/hypermasculinity-is-toxic-my-story-of-being-bullied-for-being-different/.

Priess, Heather A, et al. “Adolescent Gender-Role Identity and Mental Health: Gender Intensification Revisited.” Child Development, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2009, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4244905/.

“Stigma and Discrimination Affects Gay and Bisexual Men’s Health.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 29 Feb. 2016, www.cdc.gov/msmhealth/stigma-and-discrimination.htm.

“Two Directions: Why Harry Styles’ New Song Is a Breakthrough for Bisexual Music Fans.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 22 Mar. 2018, www.theguardian.com/music/2018/mar/22/both-directions-why-harry-styles-new-song-is-a-breakthrough-for-bisexual-music-fans.

Wang, Chien-Chuan, et al. “Effects of Traditional and Cyber Homophobic Bullying in Childhood on Depression, Anxiety, and Physical Pain in EMERGING Adulthood and the Moderating Effects of Social Support among Gay and Bisexual Men in Taiwan.” Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, Dove Medical Press, 22 May 2018, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5973463/.