OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT OBAMA: Men Can’t Fight for Feminism When They’re Culturally Disregarded

The reality is that there are very few Federal or State agencies that focus on boys (with the exception of the Corrections Department). One of your first acts as President was to create a White House Council on Girls and Women. There is no similar White House Council on Boys and Men. Dare I say it, when you advocated for African American boys, the backlash was seemingly overwhelming. (And thanks for doing that, by the way!)

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s the Government invested over $100 million to get girls caught up to boys in our schools. Today, with boys falling far behind girls, not one cent has been spent on helping them get caught up.

In the end, there will be no true feminism until we treat our girls and boys equally. There will be no true feminism if society continues to raise under-educated, under-motivated or over-aggressive, boys with no vision for good, noble manhood.

Just as boys and men should, as you say, advocate for our girls and women, so our girls and women should advocate for our boys and men. That’s true feminism.

To paraphrase Frederick Douglas: It is easier to build strong boys than it is to repair broken men.

I hope you will join in in advocating not only for our girls, but also for our boys. Only then will we be a nation of equals.