As a history undergraduate, I took a decision that surprised my predominantly male friendship group. Instead of picking modules that focused on the Kings and Queens, and political leaders who led their nations to great triumph or disaster, my choices consistently swayed towards gender history and the study of the past through the lens of socially constructed gender roles.
Notions of masculinity in modern Britain are in flux
Today, as a politician working on the government’s Men and Boys strategy, this appears to have been a wise decision. We are, once again, witnessing an acutely gendered transformation of our politics and society.
Across the western world, the patterns and themes are consistent and clear – boys and girls, men and women, are perceiving and experiencing underlying economic and social changes in vastly different manners.
The left has a problem with boys and men. Too many are drawn to far-right parties. Men’s influencers espouse a form of get-rich-quick isolationism that is anathema to the communitarian values of the Labour Party and the trade union movement that built it.
Many boys and men feel that progressive politics is for other people – and not them. Labour has a problem and we haven’t done enough to solve it. A brief perusal of data exemplifies the point. Almost half of the British public now think that women’s equality has gone ‘far enough’. One poll from the Centre for Social Justice also shows that 40 per cent of us feel society does not value traditional masculine values.
These numbers are only going in one direction and partly explain the dangerous backlash of the ‘manosphere’. And this plays out in the realities facing boys and young men.
From early years to higher education, boys are falling behind in our education system. Three-quarters of girls are deemed ready for school (a shockingly low number in itself), but just over a half of boys have the same status.
Girls outperform boys academically in secondary education. Boys are twice as likely to be excluded from school which is often a key driver toward disastrous outcomes.
Men make up a far larger proportion of the NEET (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) population – an issue which will be prioritised by Andy Burnham’s government.
Male-dominated industries such as manufacturing, agriculture and construction used to contribute 40 per cent of UK output, but over the past half century this has shrunk to just 16 per cent.
The gender pay gap – stubbornly pervasive across our economy – is now in reverse for 18-to-24 year olds. Half way through the last century, only 10 per cent of children grew up without a father. Today, that figure has doubled.
While single mothers across the country do heroic work bringing up young boys, there is robust evidence that father absence can badly affect children’s outcomes. For example, three quarters of children in custody had an absent father. This is why the renewed focus on positive male role models – at school, in the community, through formal schemes – is so important, whilst offering more support for parents struggling with familial living costs.
We should never be ashamed to highlight the importance of social and economic policy in helping family units remain resilient, without ever demonising single-parents or other family settings.
How do politicians react more generally to this phenomenon? For too long, the righteous and continued fight for women’s equality meant many on the left were anxious to confront underlying challenges to masculine culture, and any resulting hard policy considerations. That is now changing.
In the UK, our Deputy Prime Minister, David Lammy, has been tasked with leading on the cross-government Men and Boys work, and we have also published England’s first ever men’s health strategy. The next stage is for a more robust policy framework that puts these specific challenges for men and boys at the heart of government.
For too long, the righteous and continued fight for women’s equality meant many on the left were anxious to confront underlying challenges to masculine culture
In the United States, many of these themes are likely to emerge in the 2028 presidential election. Gavin Newsom has launched the Men’s Service Challenge, calling on 10,000 men to mentor, coach, serve and lead their communities. Maryland Governor Wes Moore has funded Big Brother Big Sisters, looking to increase its mentoring programmes with an emphasis on support for young men and boys.
It is surely now a matter of time before the UK once again considers mass service schemes considering the prevailing challenges of youth unemployment, national resilience and community cohesion.
I am proud to represent a constituency of ex-mining towns, not dissimilar to the scene of a recent by-election in Makerfield. These towns were built on the graft of working-class communities. The gendered expectations of those times had huge drawbacks – there is little room for wholesale nostalgia – but also some benefits.
There was an obvious route for men to provide and work, which brought camaraderie, community spirit and purpose. Thriving local institutions gave men opportunities to meet and socialise. Men and boys, and their role in society, were celebrated.
Notions of masculinity in modern Britain are in flux. For all our sakes, we must ensure the pieces settle in a healthy and productive way.
If we are going to tackle the epidemic of youth unemployment, or meet our target to halve violence against women and girls, or tackle the scourge of far-right nationalist sentiment, then a strategy for Men and Boys must be at the heart of the government’s agenda.
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