A comment exchange with selenite led me to finally create something that’s been on my mind for some time:
There is a real need for resources for boys and their parents, alternatives to Boy Scouts, analogs to Daughters, New Moon, Teen Voices, and Girl Scouts. I know that there are gender differences, and there are times when gender-specific spaces and resources are important, so the parents of boys and those of us who love and care about boys have to create them.
I invited a bunch of people, and in fact, hit the limit on outstanding community invitations. When Sam told me he never got an invitation, I went poking around and learned that LJ isn’t sending out email messages to tell people they’ve been invited! So some of you will find that you’re approved as soon as you ask to join if you’re interested.
There are people I invited who might be surprised that I did invite you, and I would truly appreciate your input. This isn’t just a place for parents. This topic is important to absolutely anyone who cares about boys, about how our (generally, Western/first-world) social conventions and child-rearing practices shape them into men. It’s about bullshit like “boys will be boys” used to excuse bullying and the shaming of any sign of “girliness” in a male child. It’s about refusing to acknowledge gender differences on one end of the spectrum, and turning them into prisons on the other end.
Please – come join us if this topic is of any interest at all to you.
The community is moderated, simply because I don’t want it to be full of trolling and such. I’d very much appreciate help from 2-3 mods other than Sam and myself. 🙂 I’ve sorta, um, picked a few likely people, but if they don’t respond to their invitations, they won’t know who they are!
BTW: The community isn’t particularly for pagans, Christians, atheists, hetero/homo/bisexuals, mono/polyamorous folks, big or little-endians. It’s for anybody, anybody at all, who cares about boys and what happens to them on the way to becoming men. That’s it.
Okay. If your interest is prurient, it isn’t for you. If you’re a pedophile, revealing yourself here or there is unwise. But, then, I think such people have probably gotten that idea by now.
