Sometimes, sarcasm is the best medicine for dealing with a bad situation. So, some women practiced their own sarcasm on TikTok by joining in on the trend “Man of the Year.” These women share their bad experiences and mistreatment by toxic men. Where’s the sarcasm? Well, their experiences are shared to the tune of Lorde’s “Man of the Year” song. One woman from Texas hopped on the trend and shocked me with her story.
The video was posted by @rootedlove88, a woman who shared in her tale of young love going horribly wrong. She shared with viewers, “THE MAN OF THE YEAR was 17, got me pregnant in 7th grade, took me and isolated me from my entire family, moved me out of state… by 17 I had 3 children. He left after my daughter was born. She’s 17 now and every time I look at her I cry because I realize I was just a baby.”
As with many of the brutal “Man of the Year” posts, people reacted with sympathy and support. One person said, “So damn happy you made it out. A lot of us don’t. Your story is hope to others.” And I hope it is, too. Her story is a clear case of grooming and abuse. The sad part is it isn’t terribly uncommon.
Since the trend started going viral, thousands of videos have been shared. Some are truly hilarious and others incredibly pitiful or melancholy. In one case shared by @graciejade777, her “man of the year” took a bat to her previous vehicle. It had been in her family for years!
Another, @idk.but.im.a.joke_ shared pages of messages her boyfriend was sending to other women on Snapchat. While some of these stories have me thinking these women were lucky to get out, others have me believing they should definitely press charges.
A man himself, @kanyons, shared a video where he’s in disbelief about the things he’s seen in some of these videos. He stated, “This man of the year trend has me thinking a lot of men are villains!” Unfortunately, with toxic masculinity and incel behavior becoming more prominent than ever before, particularly among conservatives, it’s a trend that continues.
While some people turn to humor to deal with their trauma, that isn’t always the case. Healing is crucial, especially if you’ve spent years dealing with abuse from your own “Man of the Year.”
