Making boys less beastly

PUPILS in the Australian state of Victoria will be taught about “male privilege” and shown images of men cleaning dishes and women playing football in a drive to break gender stereotypes and reduce domestic violence.

The “respectful relationship” curriculum, to be introduced next year, has been criticised for “indoctrinating” children.

Pupils aged six to eight will chant statements such as “girls can be doctors and can be strong” and “boys can cry when they are hurt, can be gentle, can be nurses and can mind babies”.

Pupils in the early secondary years will be taught about male privilege, or “automatic, unearned benefits bestowed upon dominant groups” based on gender, sexuality, race and class.

Boys can cry when they are hurt, can be gentle, can be nurses and can mind babies

The authorities have struggled to address high rates of domestic violence. About one in four Australian women aged 15 and above has experienced at least one incident of violence from a partner. But critics said the programme was ideological and seemed to assume that “all men” are bad. “The idea behind this programme — that all men are latent abusers by nature of the ‘discourse’ — is an idea that only cloistered feminist academics could love,” Dr Jeremy Sammut, of the Centre for Independent Studies, a libertarian thinktank, told The Australian.

“A lot of evidence suggests that, like child abuse, domestic violence is a by-product of social dysfunction: welfare, drugs, family breakdown.”

Defending the programme, James Merino, Victoria’s education minister, said: “It’s astounding anyone could think teaching our kids about respect for other people is a bad thing.”