In 2016, an age of technological wonder and female empowerment, a man with bushy sideburns decided it would be a good idea to write an article about why he finds feminists unattractive.
That was a bad idea.
Published on FOX’s Missouri-based newspressnow.com, Dave Hon’s column said rape culture and the gender pay gap didn’t exist, equated feminism to a hatred of males, and stated he was vehemently against dating any woman who believes gender equality should be a thing.
“People who are more loyal to their gender and not their significant other don’t make good partners,” he wrote. “Romance turns into a power struggle rather than a partnership.”
As if like clockwork, it wasn’t long before the internet’s finest turned out to absolutely tear him apart in the comments section, and some of the responses were absolute gold.
Many were from people who pointed out most feminists wouldn’t want to date someone who holds these views
Some alleged he’d been spending a little too much time reading men’s rights subreddits
And some just tore apart the very idea of publishing the article in the first place
He’s going to need some aloe vera for all those burns.
There was, however, a pervasive and harmful theme to many of the readers’ comments which, rather than focusing on Hon’s rhetoric, focused on his appearance.
Some called the journalist a “sentient jar of mayonnaise,” a “half baked potato,” and compared him to the Pokemon Raticate.
And that’s not ok.
As many pointed out, focusing on his looks rather than the content of his opinion piece did very little to further the feminist cause and was entirely uncalled for.
After the social media backlash, Hon told New York Daily News: “I expected some backlash among my local group of friends. As a journalist, I always hope that what I create encourages debate.”