Last Month the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) published their The Lost Boys Report reminding us, (once again), of some of the stark realities of gender inequality and some of the ways that boys are struggling to find meaning or success in traditional markers of masculine achievement (the economy) and some of the risks of backlash in regards to this. In the wake of the screening of Adolescence it seems to have gained a lot of traction.
Firstly, let’s remind ourselves that the CSJ was established by Ian Duncan Smith, one of the architects of Brexit. There has been a subtle and orchestrated move by the Conservative party in the UK to shift the policy narrative through the funding of think tanks and astroturfing, (driving what look like grassroots organisations but are actually facilitated by those with very close links to the Tory party), such as Parent’s and Teachers for Excellence with whom I somewhat ironically made my writing debut.
I do not wish to set the CSJ up as the big bad wolf, much of what they produce and say is worth engaging with, but if we’re going to teach the children critical source analysis, we have to practise what we preach. It is worth knowing therefore, that they are an organisation with conservative values, particularly around what constitutes a healthy family, and holding that in mind when considering how the debate is framed.
I won’t go into depth about my concerns around their framing of the data on the gender pay gap. That might just be a whole other blog. What I will say is that they draw their conclusions in relation to the earning patterns of 16-24 year olds (don’t worry lads the motherhood penalty is still firmly in place). They then relate this to notions of gender relations that do not necessarily apply to Gen Z . They uncritically present a study (presumably based on a multi- age range sample) stating that it “found men to suffer when they earned less than their wives, while women’s subjective well-being did not appear to be affected by being out-earned by their husbands”.
The report draws together meaningful concerns for us as a society, not least the sharp increase in young men becoming NEET, tragic suicide rates and the growing class and gender divide in political and social attitudes, that those of us who care about education and social justice cannot ignore.
There is something going on for young men that is for sure. However, I strongly believe we need a mature conversation about belonging, role models and representation. We must not need to kneejerk into conversations about feminism being the problem and old school masculinity being the answer as so often tends to happen with these debates.
How about, instead of that, we draw on what we know already about inclusion, gender equality and human rights? What if we went back to conversations about the PSHE curriculum and school culture and asked what was missing? What if we took more of a Middle Way, where we stopped viewing rights as zero sum and instead reminded ourselves that heteronormative-patriarchy (and white supremacy for that matter) harms everyone. What if we were more explicit about that with our boys? Opened up spaces for conversations about how sexist gender norms limit boys?
What if we made more space to ask boys what they think? Following my post on Girls Feeling Unsafe in School, I’ve been reflecting on how important it is to put our own fears and preconceptions to one side and make the space to listen to young people’s voices.
Finally, what if we considered how we moved beyond the transmission of facts about consent and healthy relationships to children and instead encouraged them to be connected to their bodies and hearts when we talked about these issues? What could that look like and how might that be beautiful and transformative…
A colleague and I have something up our sleeves. So watch this space!
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