AHA! The Bro Code

Barney Stinson wants YOU to be a "bro"

While working at my desk job at the Rod Library this week, I discovered a video while I was re-shelving some of our DVDs. The movie was called The Bro Code, and it immediately caught my attention. As a college student, I know there are different stereotypes or groups that exist on campus. One of these groups I classify as  "bros." Now, "bro" is a term that I am sure a lot of other college students, and probably younger students too, are familiar with. Barney Stinson, that notorious womanizing character from How I Met Your Mother, perfected "The Bro Code," a guidebook for men on how to sleeze their way into bed with any women. YUCKERS! To help describe this category, I have consulted the oh-so-helpful contributors of Urbandictionary.com.


As described by Frosty the Flowman, an Urbandictionary contributor, a bro is:

Found primarily in the northeast and deep south, a bro is typically a white male from a wealthy background who enjoys excessive drinking and partying, sports (especially lacrosse), and music (usually underground rap (wiz khalifa, oncue), alternative (kings of leon, DMB), and techno) Bro's dress differently depending upon the region they live in, but the main elements include polo ralph lauren, sperry's, and designer sunglasses (costa del mars, ray bans). Bro's use the college they attend or attended as status symbols and most Bro's post-college can be found in the financial business. Bro's are considered to be extremely success oriented and their aggressiveness in life tends to anger several other societal groups (see hipsters). Bros can be found in the majority of the male characters in Wedding Crashers, anybody who plays lacrosse, or Stifler from American Pie.  This is just one definition out of many pages of contributors. While I do not know how to concisely describe my own definition of this stereotype, I do know how to identify the type of individuals within the group.  The video highlighted the subculture of "bros," and how contemporary culture encourages the creation of sexist men. Paul Kivel, a Violence Prevention Educator, called it "An excellent education tool for classroom discussions about male socialization and the impact of media and pornography on men and women around them."  When we have websites promoting this cultural group's sexist mentality (sites such as http://www.brobible.com/, http://www.broslikethissite.com/), along with reality television shows like Jersey Shore, The Hills, and others that promote wild partying and derogatory behavior from men and women, shouldn't we be concerned? Is humanity really meant to enjoy acting in a way that inappropriately portrays people to be meaningless? As a pre-service teacher, the well-being of my students is extremely important to me. I don't want them to fall victim to playing into a subculture that makes such offensive behavior towards other men and women seem ok.