BY MILLAGRE RAYMOND LANGA
As an artist, researcher and someone that is interested in gender issues I have made one critical observation that in the gender discourse, the plight of the boy child is often neglected.
There is this assumption that the needs of the boy child are all met. May I also point out that I am not saying the plight of the girl child must be ignored, but I am saying that there are also too many boys out there that need help to deal with societal issues such as drug addiction, sodomy, and others that are economically disadvantaged that they need support in order to make it in life.
A lot of focus on pieces of art, and music composition has been on the rights of the girl child, which is very good. This has been happening for several decades now, and we are beginning to see the positive impact on the improvement of lives of girls in different communities. Girls have indeed been affected by male dominance in education, politics, economics and other spheres.
But we now live in times when there is also a need to focus on the boy child too. The boy child is in need of role models and people to look up to, who can teach the right values in life. Therefore, artists need to take a stance to become the voice of the boy child as role models.
Artists need to highlight the dangers of drug abuse, child labour, and other forms of abuse that might affect the boy child. All children, including boys need a role model who teaches them how to recognise the centrality of safeguarding their mental health, which plays a role in the fight against gender based violence (GBV). The artists have to make the world aware of the plight of the boy child who also has emotional needs to prevent cases of suicide. The world is currently in shock after a top South African rapper Ricky Rick (Rikhado Muziwendlovu Makhado) who allegedly committed suicide. This shows that mental wellbeing is very pivotal for young people.
Society in Africa has been patriarchal, meaning that it is male dominated with women occupying a lesser role, thus making them to be submissive. This has resulted in the exploitation of women by males and perpetration of gender based violence on women by men. It is therefore imperative for society to take note that gender equality has to be something that the boy child is socialized into from a young age so that they do not grow up to become perpetrators of gender injustices.
This means that boys need orientation for their mental health and stability to understand respect for the other gender. It means that even roles in the house or household chores must cut across all genders so that boys do not grow up thinking that they are more superior to the girl child. Artists need to also encourage – through their songs and artworks – the importance of the involvement of the boy child in conversations that orient to gender equality. Even in advocating for gender equality, the rights and the needs of the boy child need attention. The central issue is the need to focus on the mental health of the boy child.
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If the boy child is socially and economically disempowered, we will end up creating an environment where they are disadvantaged by socio-economic hurdles; vis a vis, they will become emasculated to the extent that they will also fail to meet societal expectations, and end up taking drugs, and engaging in other nefarious activities. The boy child is in need of empowerment initiatives that help them to desist from the scourge of drug use and abuse which has thus began to take its toll mainly due to the idleness that has been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The boy child too needs education with regards to sexual reproductive health matters so that they become responsible men who are able to prevent impregnation of young girls, spreading sexually transmitted diseases to girls and so on. The artist needs to spread messages that prevent boys from engaging in GBV, irresponsible sexual behaviour, and drug use.
Awareness on sexual reproductive health issues for boys is critical so that they also embrace the knowledge that can be useful in preventing instances of teen parenting, which is another source of poverty. Artists spreading such awareness can also help put more focus in the drive for abstinence and an understanding of the delicate nature of the sexual reproductive health needs of women and young girls. Empowerment for the boy child needs to also come from the significant other; who is an older relative or family friend socializing the boy child into a culture of respect and love for the other gender.
The artist has to be open minded to speak out for the needs of the boy who has been ignored. The artist has to give him attention so as to create a generation of responsible men who will understand the precepts of true manhood. This means the creation of a model man who does not abuse women, drugs, is not an armed robber and respects girls’ rights. It is a bitter pill to swallow, but the truth remains that the boy child has been ignored for a long time, which has resulted in the drug scourge now affecting the country.
- Raymond Millagre Langa is a Musician, Orator, writer and the Founder of Indebo Edutainment Trust
- Follow Millagre Ray Langa Facebook, Instagram, @Millagre Ray L or e-mail: [email protected]
