how to raise a feminist son
A love story that will resonate with feminists who hope to change the world, one kind boy at a time
From teaching consent to counteracting problematic messages from the media, well-meaning family, and the culture at large, we have big work to do when it comes to our boys. This empowering book offers much-needed insight and actionable advice. It’s also a beautifully written and deeply personal story of struggling, failing, and eventually succeeding at raising a feminist son.
Informed by the author’s work as a professor of journalism specializing in social justice movements and social media, as well as by conversations with psychologists, experts, and other parents and boys, this book follows one mother’s journey to raise a feminist son as a single immigrant woman of color in America. Through stories from her own life and wide-ranging research, Sonora Jha shows us all how to be better feminists and better teachers of the next generation of men in this electrifying tour de force.
Includes chapter takeaways, and an annotated bibliography of reading and watching recommendations for adults and children.
Praise for How to Raise a feminist son
"Jha issues an urgent, fervent plea to raise feminist sons in this trenchant guide. At times touching and always impassioned, this is an excellent resource for like-minded parents."
—Publishers Weekly
“In How to Raise a Feminist Son, Jha weaves her own fascinating, sometimes heartbreaking, and always beautiful story of raising her own feminist son with careful research, insightful interviews, and helpful advice. There were countless times in reading this book where I found myself reevaluating things I had told my own sons and setting new goals for things I would teach them in the future. True love sees you for who you are, and true love holds you to account when you fall short of who you can be, because true love knows what you are capable of. This book is a true love letter, not only to Jha’s own son but also to all of our sons and to the parents–especially mothers–who raise them.”
—Ijeoma Oluo, author of So You Want to Talk About Race and Mediocre
“You can’t punish your way to a more feminist world, I’ve long believed; you have to create, encourage, invent that world, especially in how you raise kids, but that’s only one reason Sonora Jha’s book is exhilarating and inspiring. It’s a beautiful hybrid of memoir, manifesto, instruction manual, and rumination on the power of story and possibilities of family I can’t wait to put in the hands of everyone raising kids or thinking about how we do it and how it could be different.”
—Rebecca Solnit, author of The Mother of All Questions
“Essential reading for any parent, loved one, or teacher seeking to raise feminist boys in these times. A strong case for how teaching our boys to show vulnerability, empathy, and remorse can be the path to freedom. Sonora Jha asks, ‘Can boys be feminists?’ The answer is a resounding YES.”
—V (formerly Eve Ensler), author of The Vagina Monologues and The Apology
“We need to grow better men. In this fierce, elegant, necessary book, Sonora Jha tells us how she did just that. Weaving together the personal and the political, Jha fearlessly examines our current moment and how it affects the young men among us. How to Raise A Feminist Son scorches, illuminates, and above all challenges us to do better.”
—Claire Dederer, author of Love and Trouble and Monsters
“Jha has written a beautiful and honest ode to imperfect parents everywhere who are trying to raise kind, compassionate, confident feminist sons.”
— Ms. Magazine
"(Feminist Son) explores race, gender, pop culture and power dynamics, and consistently acknowledges the imperfections inherent in pursuing ideals ... Sonora Jha encourages readers to embrace the difficulties and the joys simultaneously."
— The Seattle Times
ERMAN“The title may suggest this is a book for women raising sons, but men should also read this. It offers provocative insights into masculinity, feminism, parenting and immigrant identities.”
— International Examiner