Blog: The Democrats Are Studying Men. At Man UPrising We’re Already Showing Up.
The Democratic Party just dropped $20 million on a research initiative called SAM—“Speaking with American Men.” It’s their Hail Mary to figure out why men, especially young and working-class guys, are bailing on the party. And they should be worried. Trump crushed it with men under 30. He made huge gains with young Black and Latino men. And now, in the wake of that beating, Democrats are scrambling to reconnect with half the damn country.
So they’re launching ads in video games, building strategy decks about masculinity, and trying to figure out what men “want to hear.”
Cool.
Meanwhile, we’re over here at Man Uprising, not asking what men want—but what men need.
And let’s be clear—this isn’t about politics.
We’ve got men in our brotherhood from every part of the political spectrum—and plenty who think the whole system is a dumpster fire.
We don’t care about your party.
We care if you’re drowning.
Because while politicians are doing focus groups, we’re watching real men fall apart.
Another suicide this week.
Another “successful” man with the house, the cars, the poker nights, the golf buddies.
And yet when the darkness came—when it really mattered—he was alone.
Not because no one cared.
Because no one saw him.
Men Don’t Need Another Ad Campaign—They Need to Be Seen
That’s the first thing every man needs: connection. And not the shallow kind. Not the “I’ve got a guy for that” kind. I’m talking about the kind of connection where your guard drops, your truth shows up, and you realize you’re not alone in the fight. You don’t need more contacts. You need a circle. You need brothers. The kind who call you out when you’re hiding and call you up when you’re ready to rise.
That’s what happens in a Man Uprising Peer Group. You check your cape at the door. You drop the mask. You walk into a room with other men who’ve been where you are and aren’t afraid of where you’re headed. And it’s not about fixing you. It’s about finally seeing you. And maybe, for the first time in your life, being seen.
Purpose Isn’t a Luxury. It’s a Lifeline.
But connection alone won’t save you. A man also needs purpose. Not a mission statement. Not a curated Instagram bio. Not a productivity hack. I’m talking about soul-level purpose—the kind that keeps you breathing when everything else says stop.
Viktor Frankl, the father of logotherapy and one of my greatest influences, used to meet patients in the depths of despair and ask them one question: “Why haven’t you killed yourself?” Not to be provocative. But to be precise. Because if you’re still alive, there’s a reason—even if you’ve lost sight of it. That reason, that why, is what anchors everything.
Without it, you can win the game and still feel like you’ve lost. With it, you can lose everything and still find your way back. A man who knows his why can survive the worst. A man who doesn’t will drown in the best.
From Safe Spaces to Brave Spaces: Men Need Sacred Fire
One of the SAM project’s goals is to make the Democratic Party feel “less critical of masculinity.” So now we’re watching a parade of politicians trying to prove they’re just one of the guys—chopping wood, grilling burgers, throwing footballs. You’ve seen the ads. You know the game.
But here’s the truth: men don’t need “safe spaces.” They need brave spaces.
They need sacred fire.
Safe spaces are where you go to feel protected. Brave spaces are where you go to be transformed.
Men don’t grow when they’re comforted. They grow when they’re confronted—with truth, with accountability, with fire. Brave spaces are where a man is invited to stop hiding, stop performing, and stop running. They’re where he’s held to a higher standard—not shamed, not coddled, but called up into who he’s capable of becoming.
At Man Uprising, we don’t build retreats from life. We build arenas for it.
The circle is our fire.
The work is our weapon.
And brotherhood is the battleground where men stop being boys and start becoming kings.
No More Mascots for Masculinity
And now we’ve got Tim Walz literally up on stage doing comedy skits, trying to impress crowds and prove his masculinity with humor and locker room antics. I don’t even know what’s more exhausting—the attempt or the applause. Look, I’m all for a good laugh. But humor, for most men, isn’t connection—it’s cover. It’s how we dodge vulnerability. How we deflect when the truth is too heavy to hold.
At Man Uprising, we don’t let men hide behind their jokes. We don’t tolerate mascots of masculinity. We sure as hell don’t reduce the sacred work of manhood to a skit and a smirk. You want to talk about being a man? Then stop performing and start being one.
Vulnerability Is How You Win the War Inside
Let’s talk about vulnerability—not the version spoon-fed to you by a brand or influencer, wrapped in hashtags and packaged for “engagement.” I’m talking about the kind of vulnerability that strips you down to your bones. The kind that happens in the dark, when you say, “I’m not okay,” and mean it without the punchline.
Most men were taught that vulnerability is weakness. But the opposite is true. Denying it is what kills you. That silent stoicism, that armored chest, that “I got this” act—that’s what corrodes your marriage, isolates your friendships, and disconnects you from your own f*cking soul.
Vulnerability isn’t weakness. It’s a battleground. It’s where you stop hiding and start healing. And it’s only in that place, raw and real, that transformation actually begins.
At Man Uprising, we don’t tolerate performative vulnerability. We hold space for the real thing. Because men who can tell the truth about their wounds become men who can walk others out of the fire.
Courage Isn’t a Stunt. It’s a Surrender.
You want to talk about courage? It’s not jumping out of a plane or lifting something heavy while grunting into a GoPro. Courage isn’t the loud thing. It’s the quiet one. It’s the whisper that says, “Go back for what you’ve been running from.” It’s showing up for your kid after years of screwing it up. It’s sitting across from your wife and owning your failures. It’s calling your brother, your father, your friend—and saying, “I miss you.”
The Latin root of courage is cor—heart. That’s what we’re talking about. The courage to lead with heart. To speak from it. To stand in it. Especially when everything in your body tells you to shut down and disappear.
Midlife is your moment. The world tells you it’s your decline. We say it’s your f*cking rebirth. This is the time to either fade into comfort or fight your way into meaning.
Lone Wolves Die. Real Men Build Tribes.
Forget the myth of the lone wolf. He doesn’t survive. He dies. Every time. The story of the self-made man is a lie. We are tribal creatures. Always have been. Always will be.
What’s killing men isn’t just pain—it’s isolation in pain. We’re suffering alone. Succeeding alone. Falling apart alone. And it’s all completely unnecessary.
At Man Uprising, we build tribes, not networks. We don’t gather to talk about sports scores or sip bourbon and bullshit our way through the evening. We gather to remember who we are—and to remind each other when we forget. We gather because healing happens in circles. Power happens in presence. And growth happens when you’ve got men at your back saying, “We’re not letting you go down like this.”
You’re not meant to go it alone.
You’re not meant to hold it all yourself.
You were built for a tribe.
Stop Faking Manhood. Start Living It.
And if I have to watch one more campaign video of Tim Walz changing his oil, pretending to like hunting, or playing Madden with AOC to show he’s “just one of the guys”—I swear to God I’m going to storm the airwaves and scream:
Stop fucking pretending to be manly—and just be a man.
It ain’t about your gun.
It ain’t about your games.
And it sure as hell ain’t about your car gaskets.
It’s about this:
-
Showing up when shit gets hard.
-
Telling the truth when it’s uncomfortable.
-
Standing for something that matters.
-
Taking responsibility for your pain instead of spreading it.
-
Letting your brothers in instead of muscling through alone.
-
Living with purpose—not playing a part.
-
Having the courage to lead with your heart—even when it’s broken.
We don’t need flannel and firearms.
We need fire in the soul.
So while the Democratic Party is out there trying to understand men through surveys, ad placements, and strategy decks…
We’ve already been sitting with them.
We’ve already been building what they’re looking for.
We’ve already been doing the work.
We don’t need a campaign.
We need a calling.
And it’s already happening.
This isn’t a trend.
It’s not a tactic.
It’s a Man Uprising.
With respect – the respect every man deserves,
B
Co-Founder, Man Uprising
For Men Ready to Rise the Fck UP
