Men historically were never coddled nor did they want to be. Men’s mental health IS an issue, but it’s not because we need to be treated more like women; it’s because we don’t have the opportunity to truly be men.

Men need rites of passage (legalistic ones like turning 18 or the dumb pop culture one of losing virginity do not qualify). We need comradery (something decimated by the lack of all male spaces). Most of all, we need purpose, a cause to believe in, a cross worth bearing. Telling a boy to “man up” will not work when he has no motivation to endure. The root causes of this lack of purpose must instead be addressed. They are many, but the decline of religion, disconnect from nature, disconnect from heritage/lack of identity, consumerism, and lack of a local community strike me as some of the most obvious culprits.