A MANIFESTO

FOR BOYS Martin Daubney

Co-Founder, Men & Boys Coalition

Twitter: @MartinDaubney

Email: martindaubney@me.com

1. TACKLE THE GENDER

EMPATHY GAP

• “Are today’s boys paying for the sins of their

forefathers?” Mum of boy, 14

• “Society only sees men and boys as

perpetrators not victims” Barnardo’s

• “My son, 18, feels hated. He feels it’s girls’

turn”

• “Boys are developing a sense of shame”

• By rightly advancing the needs of girls, have

we created a generation of “lost boys?”

• Are we blind to boys’ needs? Or worse?

• ACTION: Public awareness; ceasefire in

media “gender war;” be gender blind to

needs – make our aim true equality

2. URGENT ACTION ON

BOYS’ EDUCATION • “A new educational underclass?”

• Boys now outperformed by girls

at every level of UK education

• 65,000 less men at British

Universities

• Yet ZERO government action

• ACTION: Cross party working

groups; male teacher recruitment

drive; “boys into books”

initiatives; understand family

background; more exercise!

3. MAKE PHSE FIT FOR

BOYS’ NEEDS

• UK’S pre-internet sex ed

curriculum needs

desperate overhaul

• BUT it cannot treat boys

as part of problem

• ACTION: Men & Boys

Coalition cross-party

action; my porn talks

4. HONOUR BOYS’

MENTAL HEALTH • Harry’s Masculinity Report

• Young men place more

importance on mental health

than physical health

• Young men are ready to talk

– but are we ready to listen

on their terms?

• ACTION: Talk to boys on

their terms; don’t make boys

more like girls; honour

banter

5. CELEBRATE FATHERS

• “To an 8-year-old boy, his father

is God” Warren Farrell, The Boy

Crisis

• Engaged fathers build better boys

• Fatherless boys = 70% gang

members, 85% prisoners, 63%

youth suicides

• ACTION: Encourage dads to read

with kids; legal aid reform in family

courts

6. MAKE IT “COOL TO CARE” • Shared Parental Leave

equality; the Swedish lesson

• Celebrate “everyday heroes”

of carers, teachers, male

nurses, stay at home dads

• ACTION: Government

recruitment drives; PR

campaigns; utilise alpha

male heroes to open a new

narrative on masculinity…

tax rises?!

7. MORE MALE MENTORS • 2 million boys grow up

without dads

• 10% school teachers = male

• Makes boys susceptible to

bad male role models

• ACTION: More male

teachers/mentors in schools;

local lads made

good/success stories; even

learn from ‘bad lads’

8. END MALE SUICIDE

• Number one public

health issue of our time

• Biggest killer of men

under 50

• CONCLUSION: If we

build happier, better-

educated, emotionally-

literate boys we build a

better society: we all

win!