Our worst experiences with so-called ‘wokeboys’

This past weekend Joss Whedon's ex-wife Kai Cole wrote a scathing and insightful essay about Joss and his brand of bro-feminism.

In the essay, Kai says Joss is a "hypocrite preaching feminist ideals." She goes on to say Joss used their relationship as a shield so people wouldn't be able to criticize him or his writing as anything other than feminist. Joss liked to preach feminist ideals but similarly felt pressured by society and the patriarchy to act like a man and be a provider and companion but to also "conquer and acquire – specifically sexually."

Unfortunately, the duality and hypocrisy of Joss Whedon's feminism isn't a one off. There are plenty of men who abuse their feminism. They are the wokeboys. Here are our encounters with this particularly hideous breed of scammer:

"There's this self-proclaimed male feminist I was on and off with for years. He would say things like 'We don't need a label to know it's real' and other shit like that to make me feel bad for asking. He'd claim 'guys who pressure girls are lame' as a means of getting me closer to him. Then when we'd hang out he would grab me and make me feel super unsafe, but under the guise of being a feminist. It was like he thought he was free from fucking up because he had decided he was a feminist." – Caroline

"I've had boyfriends who spoke in platitudes about supporting women and being feminist AF but then didn't understand why I'd be offended when a random man on the street would call me babe. I remember one of the dudes being like 'I bet he was just trying to connect with you. He was just being nice.'" – Cassie

"At the women's reproductive center where I volunteer to escort (protect women from protesters when they enter/exit), there's a guy who is so overtly feminist but he literally hits on all of us and has asked many female volunteers for their numbers. I'm sure he's progressive but it just seems like his reasons for working there aren't totally pure." – Anonymous

"A friend who praised himself for being a feminist told me I couldn't say I would enjoy Stephen Colbert as a late night host and be sick of the white male voice on TV at the same time. He said that the reason there weren't women in late night is because there isn't the right woman for the job out there right now. Then he reminded me that if I want to see change, I better start working harder than the boys to prove myself." – Allie

"I had a boss who often promoted his feminism suggest having a stripper pole in the office to be used when hiring female applicants." – Kris

Be wary of the males parading their feminism around like the latest pair of Yeezys. Be wary but don't be afraid to speak out against them.

@jenniferficarra