himpathy

English

Etymology

Blend of him +‎ sympathy.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɪm.pəθ.i/
• Rhymes: -ɪmpəθi

Noun

himpathy (uncountable)

1. (feminism) Inappropriate sympathy given to men or boys, especially those who are guilty of sexual transgressions.
   • 2017, Kate Manne, Down Girl: The Logic of Misogyny, →ISBN, page 196:

     But this isn't because the problem of himpathy is rare. On the contrary -- it's so common that we regard it as business as usual.

   • 2018 May 13, Helen Pitt, “Drop the 'himpathy': Clarion call of Sydney Writers' Festival's #MeToo moment”, in The Sydney Morning Herald:

     For too long we have clung to the idea of “himpathy”, as Washington Times journalist Irin Carmon so perfectly described it at the writers' festival.

   • 2019 December 18, Anne Kingston, “Will Harvey Weinstein's big show produce ‘himpathy’?”, in Maclean’s‎:

     Examples of “himpathy” abound. Cosby was buoyed by public support for decades, even as more than 60 women accused him of sexual assault.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:himpathy.

Related terms

• himpathetic, himpathize