Why Ryan Gosling ‘Hey Girl’ Memes Are a Victory for Women Everywhere

You remember the Feminist Ryan Gosling memes, don’t you? The ones in which female-affirming messages appear over pictures of dreamy RyGo, always beginning with the ever so gentle, “Hey girl”? Of course you do:
 

Well, it turns out that those memes are good for more than just making you yearn for Ryan Gosling and his swoon-worthy, feminist whispers—they apparently make men more feminist, too. 

At least, that’s what a new study by two Ph.D. students at the University of Saskatchewan hints at. The researchers exposed participants to pictures of Ryan Gosling, with and without feminist text, then the participants filled out a questionnaire rating their level of agreement with statements such as, “The workplace is organized around men’s oppression of women.” Turns out, the guys who spent some quality time with Feminist Ryan Gosling were more likely to endorse feminist beliefs.  
 

Before you start wallpapering your partner’s room with printouts of your favorite “Hey Girl” memes, it should be noted that the study’s sample size was small—only 99 participants, and only 30 of whom were male. And, though the men were more likely to agree with feminist statements after being exposed to feminist RyGo, they weren’t more likely than the other group to actually self-identify as feminists when asked.

Plus, even if the link holds, the results could also imply that men need to hear about the patriarchy from other men in order to take the patriarchy seriously—which: bummer. 

But, hey girl, we’re not about to complain if this study helps more men embrace equality and woman power—and leads to a new wave of Ryan Gosling memes. 

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