Greg Lobanov

There's a lot of violence in the world and it's almost always coming from boys, and it's had me thinking about our responsibilities as artists... (thread)

There's been a trend of stories that invite/include girls into boys' spaces for some time now... Buffy, Tomb Raider, Xena, etc which paved the way so that nowadays we can have Horizon, Celeste (<3), Wonder Woman, Hunger Games, etc...

I LOVE these stories... their message is so important and so needed, reminding girls they can be strong. But there are VERY VERY FEW stories about inviting boys to explore their femininity. I think this is having a profound effect on us.

Most of the time it is done in a mocking way that does more bad than good (the time link wore girls' clothing, "LOL"). Steven Universe stands out as one of the very few decent examples out there.

The fact that pop culture has been so one-way about this feels relevant to the fact that so many boys online vocally feel their space is "threatened." And we aren't teaching them enough to express and process their feelings in a healthy way.

We keep making art with the message that strength and violence is how heroes prove they're good. And boys keep showing us how deeply they buy into that, because they keep getting guns and shooting masses of people. NOT ALL BOYS, but a clearly alarming number.

Boys desperately need role models who are strong in the heart, who know how to communicate and solve problems non-violently. We need these everywhere, and we need them now.