Empowering Black Boys to Challenge Rape Culture

The role of men is critical when it comes to preventing sexual assault.

Gordon Braxton was in his second year of college before anybody bothered to speak to him about sexual violence, despite the fact that he already knew friends and family members that had survived a sexual assault. Unfortunately, this is a common experience as many young men and boys, especially Black boys, do not have an opportunity to discuss their views on sexual violence and what role they might play in preventing it. Empowering Black Boys to Challenge Rape Culture supports the training of a rising generation by providing commentary from an experienced educator, an overview of existing research and preventative techniques, and insight into young men’s perspectives on violence. The result is a powerful new perspective on violence prevention--the first to focus on Black boys and to be written by a Black male author.

The most critical lesson that boys need to learn is that they have an essential role to play in preventing sexual violence. So many of them accept this violence as beyond their control when they could be valuable agents of change. More and more parents and mentors of boys are coming to address sexual violence as a cultural problem rather than the activities of isolated social deviants. Empowering Black Boys to Challenge Rape Culture adds an important voice to our discussions about sexual violence education and prevention, showing that a rising generation of boys will play a vital part in realizing a non-violent future.

Gordon Braxton serves as the Director of Men’s Involvement for Campus Outreach Services where he provides educational content to secondary schools, colleges, and community organizations. He is a proud civil servant residing in the Washington, D.C. area and shares his voice on violence prevention as a blogger and public speaker.