Week of June 10, 2013

The Roundup contains information about all of the latest news, commentary, reports, surveys, issue briefs, charts, and fact sheets related to boys' issues collected by our staff during the preceding week.

News Clips

  • The death of gender-neutral clothing: New book details the history of when blue and pink became gender synonymous
    It was only in the 1940s when children's clothing began to change, and become specific to gender. Gender-neutral clothing had always been the norm with boys wearing the same crisp white dresses as girls until age 6 or 7. 
    'What was once a matter of practicality - you dress your baby in white dresses and diapers; white cotton can be bleached - became a matter of "Oh my God, if I dress my baby in the wrong thing, they'll grow perverted,"' Paoletti says.
    Daily Mail
    June 8, 2103

  • The Role of Primary Prevention by Phil Rodgers, PhD
    In a commentary in the May 2013 issue of the American Journal of Public Health, University of Rochester Medical Center researcher Eric Caine noted that most of our suicide prevention efforts have focused on the identification, referral, and treatment of people at risk for suicide – and that these efforts have met with limited success. Caine suggests that it is also important to "alter the life trajectories of people before they become suicidal" – that is, to engage in primary prevention.
    SPRC
    June 6, 2013

  • Autism, ADHD Often Occur Together, Research Shows
    Study finds nearly one-third of kids with autism also have problems with attention and hyperactivity
    Almost 30 percent of young children with autism also show signs of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a rate that's three times higher than it is in the general population, a new study shows.
    Medline Plus
    June 6, 2013

  • Sexual victimization in juvenile facilities usually involves male juveniles and female staff
    The government says 1 in 10 youths at juvenile detention facilities around the country reported having been sexually victimized by staff or by other youths. The study by the Bureau of Justice Statistics found that among the more than 1,300 youths who reported victimization by adult staff, 9 out of 10 were male juvenile detainees reporting sexual activity with female staff members.
    Washington Post
    June 6, 2013

  • Michael Douglas and the Truth about HPV
    Many health experts consider males “carriers” of HPV due to their lower known risks associated with HPV, but it is estimated that a substantial number of young men have HPV as well. Men can transmit the virus to future sex partners, even if they are asymptomatic.  Thus
    Males are an important group to target in the fight against HPV, too.
    Child Trends
    June 5, 2013

  • 'Cutest Couple' at NY High School Is 2 Boys
    The duo voted "cutest couple" in the senior class at a suburban New York high school say they're getting teased about it — but not because they're both boys. "Yeah, our friends are giving it to us about being Internet famous," said 18-year-old Dylan Meehan, a senior at Carmel High School."We've never had any problems at all," added 17-year-old senior Brad Taylor. "As a matter of fact, before the results, people were telling us ahead of time, 'You guys are going to win hands down.'"
    ABC News
    June 4, 2013

    Black Males: An Endangered Species
    According to the Schott 50 State Report on Public Education and Black Males 2012, Florida’s graduation rate for Black males was approximately 47%.   Only six other states reported a lower graduation rate.  If less than half of the Black males eligible to graduate from high school are in fact graduating, what outcome should we expect for the 53% that did not graduate?  
    politic 365
    June 4, 2013

  • Research Brief: Childhood Bullying Linked to Adult Psychiatric Disorders
    Duke University professors recently published research that shows the degree to which bullying can affect someone’s mental health. Authors Copeland, Wolke, Angold, and Costello discovered that victims of childhood bullying have a higher risk of developing mental health problems later in life.
    stopbullying.gov
    June 3, 2013

  • Research Shows How Ritalin Affects Brains of Kids with ADHD
    Ritalin activates specific areas of the brain in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), mimicking the brain activity of children without the condition, a new review says.
    healthfinder.gov
    May 31, 2013

International News

CANADA

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The Boys Initiative is a groundbreaking national nonprofit campaign to shed light on documented trends in recent years pertaining to boys' underachievement and young men's failure to launch. For more information about The Boys Initiative, visit www.theboysinitiative.org.