Stu wrote: ↑Mon Dec 13, 2021 11:08 am
If asked why more men and boys don't wear skirts, the answer is simple - it is currently unfashionable for males to wear skirts. There is no other reason.
If only it were so simple.
Fashion is only part of the reason, the others being peer pressure and herd mentality, though they are also linked.
Any guy can wear a skirt, we know that, however that puts you in the position of being different in most peoples eyes (and to be fair our own). Human nature is to be part of the group (herd) and have safety in numbers. Those outside are treated with caution at best and can be killed if thought to be a threat, you only have to watch Meerkat Manor (UK TV show on a group (gang) of Serengeti Meerkats) to understand the brutality of group / herd mentality (or go a to a football match). Peer pressure holds the group together, so wearing something non-standard is likely to see you sidelined or ostracised (imagine being in a gang and NOT wearing grey Adidas tack bottoms and Nike trainers or turning up to a Hells Angels meet on a Ducati Panigale). The LGBT (etc) communities have formed themselves into groups for mutual protection and recognition and this cafe is a sign that skirt wearing men do also, except the numbers are so small that there is little or no recognition.
None of this is relevant to humans in the 21st century, however we are hard wired to conform (albeit the wring is wearing thin). So LGBT (etc), non-white (for example in UK), non-local etc. people are still picked out and abused and skirt wearing men could fall into that minority and be abused too, hence it is a step into the unknown to dare to be seen. The fear of non-conformity and the fear of rejection, I think are bigger reasons than fashion as to why more men don't wear skirts out and about. Most people here have walked out the door, through the gate and down the street, but many others haven't. None (as far as I can tell) cite fashion as the reason for not doing so.
It's not all doom and gloom though, as society evolves, one of the (few) benefits of the entitled Gen Z's is that those barriers are now being slowly broken. Skirts for men will follow....