re: Vice Video: The New Wave of American Masculinity

quote:

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Across the country, schools are policing and punishing the distinctive, assertive sociability of boys. Many much-loved games have vanished from school playgrounds. At some schools, tug of war has been replaced with “tug of peace.” Since the 1990s, elimination games like dodgeball, red rover and tag have been under a cloud — too damaging to self-esteem and too violent, say certain experts. Young boys, with few exceptions, love action narratives. 

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Middle school started at 9:30. Parents would have to be at work earlier than that.

Mom would drop me off at school early. A few of the male teachers would do intramurals in the mornings for kids who needed to be dropped off early.

Had this version of dodgeball we played every morning before school. Not only are we socializing, but we are getting physical activity.

Fast forward til I'm about to leave for college. I'm helping my mom make extra money by helping her with summer camp at her school. We did a lil sports camp. I couldn't believe how much I had to teach these kids. None of them ever played baseball, kickball, whiffle, anything that you had to run around the bases. My mom just said they don't really do all that stuff in PE anymore.

We coddle these kids too much and aren't letting them be kids.