The emergence and perpetual evolution of the Internet and social networks come with several advantages, but more frequently we are seeing how social media is being used to advance sexual agendas, such as fluidity in gender identities and cross dressing.

Even from a creative standpoint, globally, it has become the trend for several adult men to cross dress in an effort to promote their comedy acts. Many people are entertained by their jokes and gossip, but is this the new normal that we are cultivating?

That being said, the focus of this column will be on women who prey on young boys.

A few TikTok videos have gone viral in which different women openly sought to allure a seemingly handsome schoolboy to engage in sexual activities with them. In one of the videos a woman gave a tour of her well-stocked kitchen and flaunted her different bank cards, suggesting that the highschooler should be with her because he would be greatly sustained.

It is rather disheartening that many people seemed unbothered by the behaviour of these women. Then again, for many years we have acted as though only males could prey on females. Truthfully, if the order were reversed in the aforementioned video, the man would probably be stoned or killed and, for sure, we would have feminists and gender activists calling for more to be done to protect women and girls. The type of prejudice that is levelled against males need to be recognised and equally arrested.

Many men may find nothing wrong with women behaving in this way because that is how they have been socialised; hence, they do not readily see the damage being caused to our boys who have been molested by older women, and men, too.

In many communities it is the customary for teenage boys to lose their virginity before they even fully understand puberty. I had a recent conversation with a friend from an inner-city community who informed that many boys are having sex at age 13. Several of them become babyfathers without any educational background, skill, or employment. This then creates a cycle of dependency, whether on the State or other family members. Additionally, the statistics show that many of them from this demographic tend to be influenced negatively by certain genres of music and get involved in gang-related activities.

I endorse the all-female parliamentary sitting on Tuesday. Indeed, women need to air concerns that relate to them and seek solutions to address their specific concerns. Member of Parliament (MP) Lisa Hanna, in her most recent Sunday column in the Jamaica Observer entitled ‘It “bun” mi!’, raised statistics about the number of women who are affected by intimate relationship violence. Undoubtedly, she has used different platforms to articulate women’s issues, but are our female parliamentarians doing enough?

State minister in the Ministry of Health and Wellness Juliet Cuthbert-Flynn at one point sought to resurrect the legalisation of abortion debate, but that became a nine-day wonder. Outside of that though, many have questioned the seriousness of the female government ministers, especially as they continue to embrace the so-called independent MP George Wright.

Should we also have a male-only youth sitting? Absolutely.

Many may argue that most of our politicians are already men, but we know that. The fact is, the reality of the privileged sons of Jamaica (PSOJ) differs immensely from that of the average “trying” youth.

Traditionally, the society is patriarchal, but we ought to be careful to not only focus on the advancement of women but also on male development as our young men are the more endangered species.

Oneil Madden is a PhD candidate in didactics and linguistics at the Université Clermont Auvergne, France, and president of the Association of Jamaican Nationals in France (JAMINFRANCE). Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or oneil.madden@uca.fr.