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When the Netflix series Adolescence hit TV screens in March this year, its depiction of boyhood, violence and online misogyny sparked debates across the UK and beyond.

As Young People editor at The Conversation, I knew that these were topics that academics who write for us had been building their expertise on for years. The many articles we’ve published include how parents can talk to their children about the “manosphere”, the world of hypermasculine influencers, how hustle culture plays into ideas of male self worth and what girls have to say about all this.

At the charity Cumberland Lodge, with whom I’ve collaborated in the past, the young people who make up their Youth and Democracy network had thoughts, too. And the points they’ve raised have a huge overlap with some of the nuance brought up by our experts.

How much is social media actually to blame for rising misogyny? Are influencers exploiting uncertainty left by a shift away from traditional gender roles? Do young people lack the knowledge and the opportunity to discuss these issues? How does class play a role? And is a culture of blame and a fear of doing harm stopping boys and young men from being part of the solution?

It seemed obvious that we should get everyone together to talk about this – young people giving their perspective, and academic researchers offering theirs. And we’d like you to join the discussion, too. At Newcastle University on Thursday July 3, I’ll be talking to experts and contributors to The Conversation Sophie Lively and Michael Joseph Richardson, along with young people from Cumberland Lodge’s Youth and Democracy project.

We’d love to see you there. You can get your ticket here.

Date: Thursday, July 3
Time: 6:00pm – 8:30pm
Location: Old Library Building, Newcastle University, NE1 7RG
Tickets: Tickets cost £10 (£5 concessions) including light refreshments, and can be booked here.