Gather Round Kids While I Explain This Manipulation Tactic That Men Perpetually Try To Use And Why Its

Gather round kids while I explain this manipulation tactic that men perpetually try to use and why it’s bullshit.

If someone is openly showing interest in you by making disparaging or disappointed comments about your age, they’re trying to put you on the defensive. This guy wants me to try to quell his discomfort, to bring up that I’m only a month shy of 20, etc. - he wants me to try to prove myself to him, that I’m mature and adult enough for a man like him.

His goal is to establish a power imbalance right off the bat. If we were to date, I would constantly be on the defensive, constantly striving to be an equal, constantly trying to prove my “adult” credentials. Anything he says or does or wants from this point on that I object to would just be seen as a strike against my age, proof that he was right and that I’m not mature enough for him. This is how SO MANY men pressure younger individuals (primarily women and girls) into situations and relationships they aren’t comfortable with. If he truly thought I was too young for him, he wouldn’t have messaged me. This is a very calculated move, and it’s fucking gross.

Adult relationships with age gaps are completely fine, but only if all parties view each other as equals. If someone is trying to set you up in a way that ensures that’s never a possibility, run far away.

We’re OK with letting them have this BAR though:

Part of my roadtrip tool me to Atlanta. And, the Civil Rights Center was amazing. Very powerful. They have this one exhibit where you sit at a lunch counter and close your eyes and put on headphones. And It plays sounds like you are at a sit in and people are yelling. And it times how long you can sit there for. I think i lasted almost a minute before i was almost crying.

It…made its point.

ok but FUCK this “since you’ve been gone” bullshit. I SAW IT. I SAW IT TUMBLR. TAKE IT AWAY NOW. MAKE IT GO AWAY.

fuck it up buttercup