The Boy Crisis: Why Our Boys Are Struggling and What We Can Do About It

by Warren Farrell

If your son commits a minor crime, he is also more likely to go to jail or prison than your daughter. First, if he has no criminal history and has committed a crime identical to that of your daughter, your son is more likely to be charged; second, he is more likely to be convicted of that crime; and third, when he is convicted, on average your son will receive a 63 percent longer sentence.25 We have discussed how, in an era of consciousness about racism in law enforcement, we are comparatively blind to the sexism that can magnify that racism. It is unlikely that your son will learn in school that the gap in sentencing is six times greater for men versus women than it is for blacks versus whites.26 Black boys, of course, bear the dual burden of both racism and sexism.