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Testostergroup: Khatami (’12) starts LC men’s club

February 05, 2010

by Tom Meath

Men now have a venue at Lewis & Clark to discuss issues that pertain to men. Last semester Chris Khatami (’12) founded Testostergroup, a men’s group dedicated to providing a safe place for men to talk about male issues pertaining to gender and sexuality.

“[The group’s] purpose is to expand the discussion of gender to a sphere of male influence,” said Khatami. “It is for guys going through something they feel like is a distinctly male issue.”

The group addresses the role of men in society as well as the expectations placed upon them.  Topics include everything from relationship advice to balancing school and sports.

“Men are defined not by the relationships they form but by how much [they] achieve,” said Khatami. “We are supposed to put all our energy into dominating and ruling. That comes with a lot of pressure.”

The group is especially focused on issues of gender equality and not celebrating traditional stereotypes of men.

“It’s not about fighting feminism,” said Khatami, “It’s about talking about your emotions. It’s about saying the secret things that, if you are a guy, in mainstream society you don’t say. It’s not a club for Jack Bower or John McClain. It’s for, well, there really isn’t a good model in mainstream media.”

Khatami decided to start the group in conjunction with the Womyn’s Center when he noticed the lack of honest forums for men.

“This year I began to identify more than before with men, but I really can’t that much,” said Khatami. “Then I found out that this is something a lot of men feel, but there is not a forum to talk about. I talked to the Womyn’s Center and they really liked the idea.”

Members of the Womyn’s Center are enthusiastic about men entering the discussion about gender equality.

“I think that so many men feel threatened by the Womyn’s Center,” said Leah Kravett (’13).

“It is important to have men play a part in the fight for gender equality,” said Paige Glowacky (’12). “The men’s group is a great step towards welcoming men

The idea of male foil for the Womyn’s center is not new. David Rosengard, resident director of Forest, remembers at least three other groups throughout his nine years at LC, all of which have worked in conjunction with the Womyn’s Center.

“They continue for a number of years until enough people graduate or go abroad and it drops below the critical mass of people and fades away,” said Rosengard. “It tends to be cyclical. [The challenge with creating a separate group is that] it is not clear what they would do that the Womyn’s Center does not already do.”

So far the group has only met for a number of trial runs, but looks forward to becoming a more regular event.

The group meets for discussion every Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the Womyn’s center.