( CNN ) -- Feminism 's gotten a bad rap lately . For many , even just the word itself conjures up images of radical ideology . Pop music star Taylor Swift and Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer , to cite two famous examples , asserted that they 're pro-equality , but wo n't identify as feminists . Explaining her position in February of this year , Mayer noted that she did n't have the `` militant drive '' or `` chip on her shoulder '' that comes with feminism . I 'm not particularly militant , nor do I have a chip on my shoulder ( I hope ) , but I get my share of weird reactions nonetheless . See , not only am I feminist , I 'm a male feminist . People are n't always sure what to do with that . `` You 're a man . Is n't that a contradiction ? '' `` Wait , are men allowed to be feminists ? '' `` Are you even a man at all ? '' As far as I know , men are absolutely allowed to be feminists . And when I declare that I 'm a feminist , I should explain what that word means to me . My feminism is a simple belief in equality . I 'm a feminist because I believe that men and women are and should be equal , but we 're not treated equally right now . We see it in a distorted conception of female beauty , we see it in dehumanizing portrayals of women in film and on television , and we see it when the response to rape all too often is n't support , but consists of loud cries of `` she was asking for it ! '' and `` her skirt was really short ! '' The basic sexism undergirding our world is so pervasive that I ( and others ) have grown up with it and see it at every stage of our lives . From the much-discussed pay gap to constant street harassment to denying of basic rights to women and girls , we see it everywhere . I 'll never forget the meeting I was in a few years ago because the visitors to our office never made eye contact with my female manager . I 'll wager that they thought , perhaps unconsciously , that because I was a man , I was the boss . As an incredibly junior staffer , that was a wildly inaccurate assumption . Some counter that men and women used to be unequal , but we 're passed that . A few even foolishly assert that this increasing focus on equalizing the playing field has spelled the `` end of men . '' And there 's no doubt that we 've made progress : in area after area , in country after country , we can point to some concrete signs that with advocacy and hard work , we 're slowly getting closer to gender equality . But for many women , this progress does n't mean that sexism 's gone , it just means that it 's different . As E.J . Graff , writing for `` The American Prospect , '' describes , for a lot of folks , sexism is n't a `` deadly cancer [ anymore ] ; rather , it 's a steady low-grade fever that wears you down by degrees . '' It 's the hostile work environment that makes you feel unwelcome , it 's the strange sports metaphors that do n't resonate with everyone equally , it 's the deferral to men as `` authoritative '' while women must still walk the line to avoid both being viewed as `` passive '' while not crossing over into `` bossy '' territory . And even though sexism does n't always cry out at the shrill pitch it once did , even though attacks on women can be increasingly subtle , men still have a crucial role to play . Not only do we help create the inequality , gender norms , and messages that hurt and objectify women , but critically , we suffer from its barbs as well . In a world that blames victims of rape , not rapists , our societies fundamentally do n't value the humanity of half of us . In a world that pays women far less than men for the same work ( or denies women the opportunity to work at all ) , we ignore the possible contributions of countless leaders and entrepreneurs . Hell , in a world that valorizes men who sleep around while shaming and seeking to control female sexual power , relationships of all kinds are stunted by false , inhuman understandings of who and what men and women are . Sexism does n't just hurt women , it breaks our very humanity . And ultimately , that 's why I 'm a feminist . Because women deserve to be treated as equal human beings , and it hurts every single one of us when that 's not the case . And until we get a more equal world , I 'll claim that title of `` feminist '' proudly and shout it from the rooftops . I 'll try not to get a chip on my shoulder , though . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John Brougher .
Male feminist John Brougher says feminism conjures images of radical ideology . Brougher identifies as a male feminist and often has to defend his position . Men have a crucial role to play in quashing sexism , says Brougher .