Tender And Tough: Being A Man In The 21st Century with Rebecca Walker

MP3 Download Each of us has a role to play. We're black, we're white, we're Jewish. We're male or we're female. If we decide to step outside the boundaries of the role society has prescribed for us, we often pay a price. Rebecca Walker has confronted those boundaries from the inside, as the Jewish child of a biracial marriage. She also faces them from the outside as the mother of a vulnerable and artistic son trying to understand how to be a man in our culture. In this post-feminist world we sing the praises of the sensitive male, but still celebrate his image as provider, defender and warrior. Ms. Walker wonders, "How do we teach our sons to protect themselves out there physically, but also to protect their tenderness?" Where feminism often criticized the male stereotype, she praises men for what they're doing right, and helps us understand the critical and often painful dilemma they face. Her insights provide a new sense of balance between virility and gentleness that is essential to