Where do four women find the audacity to write a men's magazine?
Our magazine showcases the negative pressures society has placed upon men. The heavy burdens men carry keep them from seeking help when they need it, from speaking out, or making a change where it's most needed. This magazine provides a platform for men to start saying what they really want to.
It's time to talk about what "unmanly" means and the connotations of it. It's time to break it down and relieve men from its harshness.
Writer, Online Editor &
Content Manager
What stands out to me most in writing these stories is the reaction from the men that I interviewed.
Over and over again they would say, “No one has ever asked me that before” and “I never even considered that until now.”
Jumpstarting conversations – for me, that is what mr. aims to do.
This magazine pushes men to start talking with each other (and with women too) about experiences that they wish to address. It gets them to talk about aspects of the male experience that they themselves stopped paying attention to, or never have in the first place.
Growing up in the suburbs as a visible minority, I often felt like I didn’t belong. There was no one around who shared my experience.
Writing about these overlooked men felt right.
But I learned during this project that even men, who on the outside seem like they have all the advantage, oftentimes feel just as isolated.
Writer, Production Manager,
Design & Art Director
I was worried this magazine would make audiences assume men are the only victims we need to care about.
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It’s not.
This magazine is the culmination of men’s stories – some of whom are victims of domestic abuse, sexual violence, toxic gender norms to adhere to and more.
I don’t know who started the problems, but I sure want to be a part of telling the stories of people who deal with them, are solving them and need our help.
If they just so happen to be men’s stories, I see no problem with that.
Writer, Photo Editor,
Design & Art Director
Earlier this year I had the pleasure to interview a trans male for the first time in my life, and that interview changed me. Speaking to a trans-male talk about how his life played out and all the adversities inflicted on him before and after his transitions really opened up an entirely new perspective of masculinity to me.
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I realized that there really wasn't a platform for alternative narratives about masculinity. This realization drove me to co-create and work on a publication like "mr." So far, I've spoken with musicians, artists, advocates, activists, academics, social workers and psychologists about toxic-masculinity, hyper-masculinity, sexuality and representation of men. What I learnt amazed me and I'm so excited to share this with you. Thank you.
Shout out to my inspiration Frank Ocean for this project.
Writer, Online Editor,
Content Manager
As a journalist who wants to be a foreign correspondent, I'm always interested in learning and enjoying all kinds of different cultures, and talk to people who have various backgrounds.
mr, really opens up my mind. It offers me the opportunity to talk to people who I never thought I would. Especially the male victim of spousal violence, his story really changed my mind about how males can face challenges that the public may not understand.
I hope my work for mr. will make a difference and start the conversation.
