"Pay More Attention to Boys"
First Lady Laura Bush announced a new initiative today: to pay more attention to boys. Seriously. I heard it on NPR's All Things Considered on my drive to school; click here for the story.
Why? Because too many girls are becoming President? Too many girl Senators? Too many girl Fortune 500 CEOs? Because the wage gap between men and women is not big enough?
Because white boys don't have enough privilege in the United States?
We face real challenges in educating and raising our children in this country, particularly poor children who are being raised in blighted urban areas with underfunded school systems by single mothers struggling to feed their families. Why not focus on them? Why not focus on African-American boys, 1/4 of whom currently end up in the criminal justice system? Why not focus on providing all workers with a living wage so that those single parents can afford to spend more time with their children, helping them with their homework, rather than holding down 2 or 3 jobs?
But the catch-all "Focus on Boys" initiative seems naive at best, and at worst, another policy put in place by the Bush Administration to provide those with privilege -- in this case, upper-middle class, white boys -- with more privilege, time and attention. Because we need to create the next generation of little George W.'s.
Why? Because too many girls are becoming President? Too many girl Senators? Too many girl Fortune 500 CEOs? Because the wage gap between men and women is not big enough?
Because white boys don't have enough privilege in the United States?
We face real challenges in educating and raising our children in this country, particularly poor children who are being raised in blighted urban areas with underfunded school systems by single mothers struggling to feed their families. Why not focus on them? Why not focus on African-American boys, 1/4 of whom currently end up in the criminal justice system? Why not focus on providing all workers with a living wage so that those single parents can afford to spend more time with their children, helping them with their homework, rather than holding down 2 or 3 jobs?
But the catch-all "Focus on Boys" initiative seems naive at best, and at worst, another policy put in place by the Bush Administration to provide those with privilege -- in this case, upper-middle class, white boys -- with more privilege, time and attention. Because we need to create the next generation of little George W.'s.
posted by Me at 4:51 PM
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