From Adolescence to the manosphere: has 2025 been the year of the boy? | Men
The Prime Minister said it was “really difficult viewing”, while the UK police force said it should be “a wake-up call for parents”. Netflix drama Adolescence, which tells the story of a 13-year-old boy arrested for killing a classmate, was hailed from school gates to the Houses of Parliament for drawing attention to the toxic effects of the manosphere.
But the national conversation did not end with the latest episode of the hit drama. A series of high-profile campaigns, conversations, policy changes and studies have led to a sense that 2025 is the year of the boys.
Earlier in the year, former England football manager Gareth Southgate warned of the dangers of “callous, manipulative and toxic influencers”. Lost ChildrenA study conducted by the Center for Social Justice found that “boys [were] from education to mental health, falling behind”.
In June, the first ever “Dad strike” took place when fathers gathered in London and Edinburgh to protest the woefully weak paternity leave provisions in the UK. By November, the government had carried out the first production in history. Men’s Health Strategy for Englanda month later Violence Against Women and Girls strategy The focus was on preventing misogynistic behavior in boys.
The warnings about toxic masculinity were harsh. But after a year in which the debate about men and boys has moved from the fringes of the internet to the mainstream, experts and policymakers are calling on progressives to focus less on toxicity and more on positive role models.
Among them is a group of Labor MPs who began organizing through a ballooning WhatsApp group in March and have now formed an official parliamentary group (the Labor group for men and boys).
One member, Bolsover MP Natalie Fleet, spent her allotted time talking about the amazing men in her community at the International Men’s Day debate in parliament – including her husband, a “real hero” she met when she was 16, who helped raise her first child and has now reduced his hours to help look after their grandchildren.
He said: “These are men who are doing the right thing in our communities, whom we need to find and empower, and that’s what we can do through this group.”
In 2025, the influence of misogynist figures like Andrew Tate shows little sign of abating, despite accusations he has denied in multiple jurisdictions. Tate went to the US and cemented her role as a leading figure in Trumpworld. A survey earlier this year found that a fifth of UK men aged 16 to 29 who had heard of Tate had a positive opinion of her.
But other organizations parked their tanks in Tate’s garden. Movement And Equimundo started Young Men and the Media Collective in October, which funds influencers to deliver a different kind of masculine message.
“Policymakers have recognized that young men, especially online, are being harmed and their health is being damaged by the content they see,” said Amy O’Connor, the charity’s policy lead. “It’s all well and good to criticize online content, but what are we doing to give our young men an alternative?”
Erewash MP Adam Thompson said the phrase “men’s rights” carries with it “a whole host of unpleasant connotations”, but there is also recognition that boys and men need targeted policies as much as girls and women, from education to suicide rates. “I have a strong belief that patriarchy is harmful to both men and women,” she said. “This is not a zero-sum game.”
Joeli Brearley, founder of campaign group Pregnant Then Screwed, argues that it is true that public discourse is focused on men. The lack of discussion about the challenges boys face led him to launch a podcast this year. Being a BoyHe co-hosts with fatherhood champion Elliott Rae.
But Brearley advises caution. The rise of the far right, growing support for Reform UK and the possibility of sexism in increasingly common AI tools worry her.
“We’re having really productive conversations about boys, but I’m also seeing a big shift in the way women talk about their experiences online,” she said. “It’s like you can’t have it both ways; we’re no longer allowed to talk about the fact that women still face certain challenges because we’re now saying men face those challenges.”
The desire to combat the sudden rise in more traditional and reactionary masculine ideals has also increased exponentially, said co-founder George Gabriel. Father Change. “The challenge is real. But while the situation is dire, I think we can be somewhat optimistic that we are starting to find a path forward. That’s where we’ll find ourselves by the end of the year.”
