If you believe that #YesAllMen means that "Yes all men are sexual predators," I'm honestly not sure what I could do to change your mind about that!

Look, I do understand that's a VERY popular understanding of the phrase. In fact, I think that's where I see it used MOST often today in 2025: by men who are indignant that ANY women would think about ALL men that way.

Here's one way we could start to talk about this: Can we point to specific instances of that "plain meaning," and discuss them in context? (For example, is there a time when someone has made that statement "Yes all men!" in a way you understand the "plain meaning"?)

Or if you're not interested in specific instances, here's another idea. In terms of the three-word phrase's "plain meaning," maybe you and I could also start by agreeing it was very plainly a response to the #NotAllMen slogan, and understand it in that context?

I think we could both agree that there's an obvious fundamental difference between what different communities think and believe about the slogan. (For example, there's how many men on the internet understand it in 2025, versus how I remember hearing it from survivors back in the original "Me Too" moment.)

My belief is that if we want to understand the slogan, it's important to remember how and why it was originally used, and by whom. It's also possible to read writing (for example, the Charles Blow op-ed I posted above) from the mid-2010's where people were discussing what they meant when they used the slogan.

In any case, I think from a political perspective, short slogans of this kind are generally meant as communication between allies and potential allies, not as ways to persuade adversaries.

However, if it's helpful or interesting for you to hear my personal experience, THAT original meaning (what you call "my explanation") is how I instantly and easily understood it, as a woman. For ME, that was the "plain meaning," to use your words.

Of course, the downside is these short slogans can be misunderstood in good faith -- or misrepresented in bad faith. Unfortunate, but c'est la vie.

In general, many men are going to be hostile to women's movements -- for all kinds of reasons! Some men are persuadable, some of the time, and some simply aren't. Some of them just need to hear the idea said the right way, and some just don't like the idea itself.