Reflections on the Podcastinterview with Christin Chudy
As part of our upcoming workshop “Liebe, Sex und Männlichkeiten”, I was invited to speak with Christin Chudy on the podcast “Under Pleasure” about the topic of masculinity(s) and what influence internalized (male role) images and conditioning have on oneself and how it can shape the expression of sexuality.
What a rollercoaster…
Overall, I’m quite happy with the result – once you dive in, it’s a huge and complex topic and it is my first published podcast… :)). At the same time, it touches vulnerable points in times of destructing patriarchy to enter into public discourse about (especially cis-) male experiences in relation to desire and sexuality. Personal experiences in my own biography, my journey from critical discussions of power in relation to masculinity and, associated with this, my ongoing process of positioning myself in relation to my social and biological male gender all plays in.
As a male-socialized person who juggles both forms of being a man (whatever that means exactly) as well as queer parts of himself, I see it as a continuous critical reflection process in a system that promotes certain values of masculinity through socialization, to uncover structures of privilege and deal with them in responsible way. This work doesn’t stop and as long as we continue to live in patriarchal structures, it requires me to be constantly awake and stay with it!
Even if men are not the patriarchate per se (as I say at one point in the podcast), I would like to point out that there is a large proportion of people who identify as men and have internalized structures of the patriarchate and (more or less consciously) embody that through their thoughts and actions (unfortunately we also find many of these people in political leadership positions): reproduction of hurtful and violent actions towards marginalized groups and/or less privileged people, various forms of discrimination (transphobia, homophobia, racism , sexism etc.), religious, economic or power-driven wars can be result from this. There are several real-life examples where patriarchal structures are obviously or rather subtly at work: the mutual celebration of masculinity values with corresponding images of women and forms of sexualization (forms of bro culture), the “masculinity ego” in management positions and also the social reality of unequal distribution of wealth and finances, sexual violence against women and other, strongly religious ideas about being a woman/being a man etc… the list could go on.
I realized how much I have a desire to do justice to the complexity of this very broad topic, to address the effects and concerns of different gender identities in a toxic patriarchal system. Did I succeed?
I don’t know it. But I know that my questions are becoming clearer and continue to arise: How can we dare to talk about these complex topics and create space for the overwhelm, pain, anger or sadness that these topics may bring with them? How can we create social structures of support and togetherness in the different affected positions, practice meeting each other as living, feeling human creatures and be present with each other? How can we pick up the carpet of guilt that seems to lie beneath everything, shake it out, knock it out and actively take responsibility in this huge process of social change? What does this mean specifically for our human relationships in our closer and wider environment?
And why does it actually make sense to work somatically with the body in all this?
According to biologists, the body replaces 330 billion cells every day. 3.8 million new cells are produced every second. The body is a walking miracle of constant change. And it always moves in the context of systems that influence our own experiences. If our internal structures are influenced from outside and vice versa, can we perhaps advance our cell renewal so that our living physical existence serves our fellow world and promotes the change we want for the life that we love…?
In a nutshell: What I mean to say is that the conversation isn’t over yet and continues. I hope with this podcast interview I was able to give some food for thought and inspiration as a reference to keep moving, feeling and thinking.
Click on the following links to listen to the interview (Interview was held in german language)
Listen to the Interview on Spotify
Listen to the interview on Apple Podcast
With love
Lukas
