I want to write a post about a book I have just purchased. I don’t often feel the need to shout about products I have paid money for but this deserves special mention and all the exposure it can get. As well as being a beautiful coffee table book with stunning photography, this book also has a mission.

Being Mankind is a collection of real life stories from men that dispel the notion of traditional male stereotypes. Whether that be stories about gangs, stay at home dads, being thrown out of school, loss and grief, adversity or body image - the aim of the book is to promote kindness, to help young people and adults alike that ‘being a man’ being told to ‘man up’ and all of those macho, outdated and nonsensical notions and ideas of what being a man is are absolute rubbish.

It promotes being the best person we can be, equality and focusing on the good around us- and the book is part of the organisation’s mission. They also work in the community, engaging in education and youth groups to be part of the discussion around masculinity and our society with the hope that this generation can develop into kind, empathetic and confident adults.

Throughout my career I have worked with teenagers in care, in young offender institutes, in schools and in prisons; and the one thing all teenagers (and most adults) have in common is insecurity. In themselves, in the world around them. Often that insecurity manifests itself in a massive desire for acceptance. Acceptance from peers, acceptance from family, acceptance from society. If we are lucky we find this in a positive way - for a lot of people this can be ultimately destructive; for themselves and for others. In the search for acceptance we may do stupid things. And it is staggering how much of this desire is driven by gender driven behaviour stereotypes. It is something that was not addressed when I was growing up, and I’m not sure it still, in 2018.

For every copy the book sold, they donate a copy to a youth group or school to keep the conversation going, to promote their aims.

If you have teenage children, or work with young people then I cannot recommend this book enough.

Please check out Being Mankind’s website to see the outstanding work they do and to order a copy of the book.

www.beingmankind.org

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Being Mankind