This Is Why Feminists On TikTok Say They Would Rather Be Alone With A Bear Than A Man

Would you rather be stuck in a forest with a man or a bear? That's the question women are answering all over social media.

Given that bears are wild, unpredictable animals and are also typically extremely large, strong, and aggressive when they encounter humans it seems obvious women should opt for the company of a man. Surprisingly, however, most are choosing the bear.

Their reasoning? Apparently, many women believe that men are more dangerous because statistically men commit more violence against women per year than bears do. There's an obvious flaw in this logic, but we'll come back to that later.

Feminist writer Kate Lister wrote an article explaining why she "wishes" she could choose a man instead of a bear but ultimately concludes that the bear was the safer bet.

"Now can you see why the bear is the obvious answer for so many women?" writes Lister, after sharing some statistics and stating that men committing violence against women is not "sensationalized enough" by the media.

"When all’s said and done, no bear has ever followed me home or sent me a photo of his penis," Lister continues. "If we are looking at averages, the plain truth is that women are safer in the woods with a bear than they are with a man, and that is just incredibly sad."

It's interesting that Lister brings up "averages" because that's actually what debunks her claim. On "average," women have close encounters with far more men throughout their lives than they do bears, so it makes sense why there are more instances of men attacking women than bears attacking women. However, if women encountered bears as often and as closely as they encountered men, the statistics surrounding bear attacks suggest many more women would be mauled or killed by bears than by men.

Lister actually admits this later in her article, but other women across social media disagreed and claimed that bears are "generally harmless" with attacks being rare. What they fail to realize is, if we're really thinking in terms of averages, then the same defense is even more true of men. For example, if we're talking about the United States, given the total population of men and how often women interact with them, on average, most women's daily interactions with men are also "generally harmless."

Additionally, many women are just straight-up downplaying the potential danger of a bear encounter. The National Park Service page on "bear attacks" doesn't give the impression that they're "generally harmless." Instead, it lists extensive precautions to take to avoid a bear encounter and your best chance to survive one. It ends with this note:

"Predatory bears are very different than surprised or defensive bears. If you encounter a bear that’s curious or stalks you like a predator, be ready to fight. Do NOT run. Stalking and curious bears are not in a defensive mindset like a surprised bear. They are ready to attack their prey at a moment’s notice, and YOU are the prey. Try to seek shelter in a car or building if possible. If that isn’t an option, be ready to fight. If you notice a bear stalking you, now is the time to get your bear spray ready. If the bear attacks you, fight back with anything that you have. Use any available weapon to fight the bear (sticks, rocks, bear spray, even your fists). If a predatory bear attacks you, no matter the species, fight back with everything you have."

Thus, it seems that the most rational conclusion is that, just like some bears are dangerous, some men are dangerous, but, on average, you're likely much safer with a man than a bear.

Women shared additional reasons for their choice, which can be summed up by the rest of Lister's article.

"Then there is the fact that if I was attacked by a bear, no one would tell me I was making it up," she adds. "I wouldn’t be asked what I was wearing, if I was drunk, or what I had done to provoke the bear. It wouldn’t matter if I had seen the bear before in the past, or if I am the kind of woman who likes seeing a lot of bears. No one would say I was asking for it, and as far as I am aware, #NotAllBears has never trended on Twitter."

This kind of reasoning is at least a little more honest. While the behaviors she described occur often and are terrible, projecting them onto all men is simple prejudice. It's stereotyping an entire group based on the actions of some within the group. Feminists wouldn't tolerate this kind of prejudice if it were directed toward women or any other group, which shows that it's an emotional reaction against men rather than a thoughtful response to a real societal issue.

While we absolutely should condemn violence when it occurs, it's completely unfair, unfounded, and dehumanizing to suggest that men are more dangerous than bears. Many men have expressed their surprise and disappointment at being shamed and labeled "a threat" for the sake of a silly social media trend, and women who genuinely want a better world for both sexes should stop and consider if rhetoric like this is really helping the divide or just deepening it.

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