He replied:<\/p>\n
The issue of gender inequality has also been part of my advocacy.<\/p>\n
I guess it is because as a man who is black and gay, I know what it means to be shortchanged, though this experience of mine is in no way equitable to the aggressive suppression of women.<\/p>\n
At least I can never deny the privilege I have as a man, though I ended up losing that for being black and gay. So this experience has always shaped my understanding of gender inequality.<\/p>\n
What I know is that the Me Too movement helped to gather momentum for the issue. It drew the attention of many men who are either ignorant to the issue or knew about it and have excused it. It also helps one to see how endemic the situation is and really gave a lot of us the opportunity to stop being passive allies,\u00a0<\/strong>to actually stand up and speak with the understanding that we are just a backup as men in this battle and we can only support and not take over the battle.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
When asked if he identifies as a feminist, he said:<\/strong><\/p>\n
No, I am not a feminist, I am\u00a0a fem-ally.<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t think men should be feminists and\u00a0I have written about this. I find it a micro-aggression\u00a0for men to call themselves feminist. I mean, we represent everything that led to the feminist movement in the first place and I don\u2019t see the reason why we want to still occupy that space.<\/p>\n
From my experience, feminist men are mostly patronizing and trying to shape the agenda of women. They are the kind of men who want to be part of the women\u2019s movement by telling women how to say things so [men] don\u2019t get offended. It is like white people joining black movements and wanting black people to be sensitive to their feelings. I mean, the reason black people are organizing in the first place is because of you.<\/p>\n
I strongly believe in being a responsible ally to women\u2019s struggles, and as far as I am concerned, I don\u2019t think there is a better way to be a feminist. I am a man, I have no idea how a woman defines her feminism and I think it will be completely disrespectful and patronizing for me to have an opinion when I\u2019m not asked. The other thing is, a lot of men are feminists because of their sister, their mother, their best friend who is a girl, their daughter, their wife, and I kind of wonder, \u201cWhat if you are a guy with brothers and from a male, same-sex family with no woman in the picture? Will your view about gender inequality still be the same?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
On what he does on a daily basis to advance gender equality, Bisi said:<\/strong><\/p>\n
I had a personal experience once, as a public speaker: I was invited to an event in America where I was expected to pay for my own trip to attend this event and speak. I did not ask them to invite me in the first place. So when I told them I don\u2019t have money, they agreed to pay for my flight and hotel and I was specifically told to make sure I book in economy class.<\/p>\n
At the airport on the day of the trip, I made acquaintances with a white guy because he was reading a book I just finished reading. We both knew we were going to New York City but we had no idea we were going to same event, which we discovered when we shared a car to the hotel.<\/p>\n
During the course of our conversation, he told me he had flown business and he is being paid. He asked how much I was being paid\u00a0and why he didn\u2019t see me in business; I told him I flew economy and I am not being paid. I told him my experience with the organizer.He took it upon himself to stand up for me when it mattered and I was finally paid. This had a strong impact on my life and activism, I learned to use my platform and privilege to challenge attacks on others. So a few years back, I refused to speak on an all-male panel. And I don\u2019t stop there\u2014I have a database of women I recommend to event organizers when they tell me they can\u2019t find women.<\/p>\n
I strongly believe that my platform is not just to promote myself, but also to make everyone invisible visible. In this age where we think the experience of women is not valid, and even worse that of black or trans women, it therefore becomes the responsibility of those of us with opportunity to create opportunity for others.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
![\"Bisi](\"https:\/\/alexis.lindaikejisblog.com\/photos\/shares\/5bd87f5895083.PNG\")
<\/p>\n