I’m just a man still tryin’ to provide

Toxic, My Ass!

[instrumental intro]

[Intro – Spoken over slide guitar] 

Yeah… they got a new word for a man now 

Call him “toxic” if he stands tall 

Hell with that.

[Verse 1] 

I was raised on “yes ma’am,” cracked hands and calluses 

Daddy said “protect what’s yours, son, that’s what a man does” 

Now some blue-hair professor with a grant and a grudge 

Says my backbone’s a disease and my grit needs a drug 

They want me cryin’ on TikTok, huggin’ it out in a circle 

While the world burns down and the borders stay purple 

Boy, I’ll apologize the day the sun don’t rise 

Till then you can kiss this “toxic” ass

[Pre-Chorus] 

I built the house you live in, fought the wars you won’t 

Died in the mines so your iPhone stays on 

Call me what you want, I still open the door 

Ain’t changing for nobody, never have before

[Chorus – Full band kicks in, female harmonies in parentheses] 

Toxic, my ass (toxic, my ass) 

I’m the last of my kind, built to last (built to last) 

You can shame me, blame me, cancel my name 

But I’ll still be standin’ when your trends fade away 

Call it what you want, I call it alive 

Toxic, my ass – I’m just a man still tryin’ to provide

[Verse 2] 

Little boys in the classroom, can’t run, can’t fight, can’t yell 

Doped up on Ritalin, livin’ in pink-painted hell 

Teacher says “sit still, honey, your energy’s wrong” 

While the girls get the trophies and the boys sing this song 

They took the shops, took the shop class, took the dodgeball and dirt 

Told ‘em “toxic” so much they started wearin’ it like it hurts 

Nah, son – throw that word in the trash where it belongs 

Real men are still out here, and we been here all along

[Chorus] 

Toxic, my ass (toxic, my ass) 

I’m the last of my kind, built to last (built to last) 

You can shame me, blame me, cancel my name 

But I’ll still be standin’ when your trends fade away 

Call it what you want, I call it alive 

Toxic, my ass – I’m just a man still tryin’ to provide

[instrumental solo]

[Bridge – Half-time, spoken over clean guitar] 

I ain’t sayin’ we’re perfect – hell, we done some wrong 

But every bridge you cross, some rough man laid the stone 

So before you spit that poison phrase, remember who you’re talkin’ to 

That “toxic” you keep hatin’ is the same one pullin’ you out the roof

[Final Chorus – Louder, gang vocals + female harmonies] 

Toxic, my ass! (toxic, my ass!) 

Raise ‘em up high if you still got some brass (still got brass!) 

Let ‘em scream, let ‘em cry, let ‘em call us the past 

We’ll be holdin’ the line long after they’re ash 

Call it what you want, I call it alive 

Toxic, my ass – watch a real man rise!

[Outro – Guitars wail, crowd chant] 

Toxic, my ass… 

Hell no. 

Turn me up.

[instrumental outro]

 Core Argument Behind "Toxic Masculinity"

The phrase "toxic masculinity" originated in academic and feminist discourse (notably in the 1980s–1990s mythopoetic men's movement and later popularized in gender studies) to describe a culturally enforced subset of traditional masculine norms that are claimed to be harmful both to men themselves and to others. The key claims are:

1. Specific traits are labeled "toxic" when taken to extremes or enforced rigidly:

  - Stoicism (suppressing emotions) → leads to mental health crises, suicide, inability to seek help.

  - Dominance and aggression → linked to violence, sexual assault, bullying, and domestic abuse.

  - Risk-taking and suppression of vulnerability → higher male rates of workplace deaths, addiction, and early mortality.

  - Homophobia and anti-femininity → punishes men who show softness or associate with women, reinforcing patriarchy.

2. These traits are socially constructed, not biologically inevitable:

  Proponents (e.g., APA's 2018 Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Boys and Men) argue that "traditional masculinity ideology" is learned through socialization (fathers, media, peers, sports culture) and can be unlearned or reformed without eliminating positive masculine traits (courage, protectiveness, strength when used responsibly).

3. It harms everyone:

  - Men: Higher suicide rates (3–4× women in most Western countries), shorter lifespans, emotional isolation.

  - Women and minorities: Higher rates of male-perpetrated violence and oppression.

  The solution proposed is to encourage emotional literacy, reject dominance-based hierarchies, and promote "healthy" or "positive" masculinity (e.g., men crying, sharing feelings, rejecting "boys don't cry" messaging).

 The Critique: How the Concept Is Used to Minimize Strong Men and Damage Boys

Critics (Jordan Peterson, Warren Farrell, Christina Hoff Sommers, and much of the manosphere/IDW) argue that "toxic masculinity" is not a neutral diagnostic term but a politically motivated rhetorical weapon that functions as follows:

1. Conflates normal masculinity with pathology:

  - Traits like competitiveness, stoicism, risk-taking, and physical assertiveness are evolutionarily adaptive and culturally essential (men built almost all infrastructure, fought most wars, invented most technology). Labeling their exaggerated forms "toxic" quietly pathologizes the traits themselves. The APA guidelines, for example, list "stoicism" and "competitiveness" as problematic without clear boundaries, implying ordinary male behavior needs therapeutic correction.

2. Creates a no-win scenario for men and boys:

  - Traditional masculine traits → "toxic."

  - Reject them and adopt feminine or androgynous norms → celebrated as "healthy" or "evolved."

  - Result: Boys in school are disciplined more harshly for typical boy behavior (rough play, high energy), medicated at higher rates for ADHD, and taught that their natural impulses are inherently suspect. Male teachers have declined sharply (only ~24% in U.S. elementary schools), leaving boys with fewer male role models.

3. Statistical sleight-of-hand:

  - 90–95% of prisoners, workplace deaths, combat deaths, and homicides are male, but these are cited as proof masculinity is "toxic" rather than evidence that society assigns men the most dangerous, dirty, and disposable roles. Critics argue this blames men for systemic expectations placed on them rather than celebrating their sacrifice.

4. Cultural impact on strong men:

  - High-achieving, dominant, or unapologetically masculine men (athletes, CEOs, soldiers, tradies) are increasingly portrayed as suspect or in need of "checking their privilege." Media and academia reward men who self-flagellate or adopt progressive framing (e.g., "I’m working on my toxic traits") while punishing those who defend traditional masculinity (cancellation, deplatforming).

5. Long-term damage to boys:

  - Boys’ academic performance has declined relative to girls in most Western countries since the concept gained traction in education curricula.

  - Fatherlessness (now ~40% of U.S. children) is 1 in 3 boys grow up without fathers, yet efforts to reinforce male authority or traditional role models are often labeled "reinforcing toxic masculinity."

  - Rising male depression, suicide (male rate 3.7× female in U.S.), and "deaths of despair" among working-class men coincide with decades of messaging that traditional male identity is the problem.

In short, critics contend "toxic masculinity" is less a clinical term than a ideological tool that rebrands socially useful or biologically rooted male traits as defects, erodes male authority and self-respect, and leaves boys without positive models of strength—producing generations of men who are either passively compliant or reactively extreme (e.g., incel or hyper-masculine backlash subcultures). The phrase, they argue, doesn’t target "toxicity"—it targets masculinity itself while pretending otherwise.