Open Letter to Symantec/Norton/O2 regarding the Censoring and Labeling of Men's Sites as Hateful

It has been brought to my attention that my web site menaregood.com has been listed as a hate site via Symantec/O2. This is a preposterous claim. I have been working with men for many years as a mental health professional. During that time I have specialized in learning and then teaching other mental health professionals about the uniqueness of a man’s way of processing emotions. I have written three books on the topic and have appeared on CBS Evening News, CNN, the Washington Post, NY Times and many others. I have presented workshops in the United States, Europe, Canada and Australia teaching mental health professionals about men’s uniqueness. When NFL Films chose to do a documentary on the NFL and Grief they called me in as their expert. The show ran on both ESPN and the NFL Channel.

It was through this work in understanding men that I first began learning of the places where men face discrimination and hardship for simply being men. It was crystal clear that men in emotional pain were routinely ignored and expected to figure it out on their own while women were offered support and understanding. The emotional pain of men was taboo while a woman’s pain was a call to action. I started bringing these discrepancies to the attention of the public and found out very quickly that people simply didn’t want to hear about it. Not only was there very little interest, the media was complicit in their stories published to be sure to focus on females in need and not males.

As the years went on I started seeing many other areas where men faced discrimination and hardship. Places like family courts, domestic violence treatment, false accusations, health care, and many others. Again, it was clear that the public was allergic to these issues when it came to the needs of men, no matter how true they might be. They were supported by a media that stuck to the politically correct theme of women as victims in need of help and men as the problem.

Then along came the internet and suddenly there was a voice for men that came alive. Sites were popping up daily to bring awareness to the discrimination and hardship of men and boys. Now, even without the help of the media the word was getting out, no matter how much people didn’t want to hear about it.

Then along comes Norton/Symantec/O2 who decide that those sites that are voicing the needs of men aren’t really voicing the needs of men, they are hateful! We have seen this before. It’s the same turning of the head we have seen from the media for years, now it’s just a little different and much more lethal since the free speech of humanitarian activists is being silenced by a group that is hidden from view and exercises control over the lives of others from behind a screen. No voting about this, no discussion about this, no notes sent to site owners about this, no rules that map out what can and can’t be done. No. Just a silent and invisible group that imposes their will and judgements upon millions. I will avoid drawing the obvious comparison.

I am asking you to please remove my site from this list immediately. If you choose to not do so I think it is only fair that you let me know what violations I have committed that justify classifying a humanitarian effort as hatefulness.

I would also ask that you do the same for the other men’s sites listed below that you have dubbed hateful. Either take them off the list or explain exactly why they are there.

Tom Golden, LCSW

Tom Golden

Tom Golden is the author or three books, Swallowed by a Snake: The Gift of the Masculine Side of Healing, The Way Men Heal, and Helping Mothers be Closer to Their Sons: UnderStanding the Unique World of Boys. Tom was the creator of the youtube channel Men Are Good , was in the Red Pill Movie, and served as the vice chairman of the Maryland Commission for Men’s Health. He has been a therapist in private practice for over 30 years.

Open Letter to Symantec/Norton/O2 regarding the Censoring and Labeling of Men’s Sites as Hateful