OK, full disclosure – I do
not have sons, so perhaps I could be chastened for not having a clue what it
takes to raise a young man in today’s culture. However, I do have two girls,
both of age, one still in college, and both – in my estimation – strong, competent,
extraordinary young women. And both, by most accounts in addition to my own,
drop dead gorgeous.

But I have to wonder – what messages
are young men hearing, especially the young college men who use the prevailing
culture of drunken tomfoolery to excuse sexual assault? Weren’t values like
kindness, respect, and self-respect imparted from toddlerhood? What happens in
adolescence when testosterone ramps up? What messages are our young men getting
– from schools, from the media, and yes, from parents? Are we dropping the ball
in the guise of “building strong men?” And why are all the “good” guys, who
wouldn’t think of having drunken sex with someone they barely know, not
stepping up, stepping in?
“No means no” shouldn’t just
be a watch-phrase for young women. That’s a message for everyone, and young
people especially need to hear it and have the courage to say it, loud and
clear.
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