# Millennials Raising Sons to Speak Up After Cornell

> Millennial parents teach sons to speak up on consent after Cornell lawsuit.
- Title: Millennials Raising Sons to Speak Up After Cornell · Salon
- Summary: Millennial parents teach sons to speak up on consent after Cornell lawsuit. Millennial parents are teaching sons to speak up about consent and boundaries…
- Keywords: millennials, sons, consent, cornell, parenting, rape culture, boy moms, news, politics, Raising, Speak, Salon
- Source: Salon — https://salon.com/2026/10/18/the-millennials-raising-sons-to-speak-up-after-cornell
- Author: Nicole Karlis
- Published: 2026-10-18T10:30:10+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: millennials, sons, consent, cornell, parenting, rape culture, boy moms, news, politics
## Parents and therapists say consent talk is only start
Millennial parents teach sons to speak up about consent after Cornell lawsuit.

> I want to raise a son who understands that his responsibility to another human being doesn’t end with, 'I didn’t do it.'
## Masculinity isn’t aggression
Masculinity isn’t aggression, and being a good man isn’t about never having anger or difficult emotions.

> Masculinity isn’t aggression, and being a good man isn’t about never having anger or difficult emotions.
## Teaching boys to speak up
Parents teach sons to ask for help and understand mental health without facing everything alone.

> They understand their own mental health and know that becoming an adult doesn’t mean having to face everything alone.
## Pew Research poll shows shift
Millennials are more likely than Boomers to encourage boys to play with toys and pursue activities normally associated with girls.

> Millennials were more likely than Boomers to say it’s a good thing for parents to encourage young boys to play with toys and pursue activities normally associated with girls.
## Therapists emphasize emotional vocabulary
Therapists say teaching boys to speak up starts with low-stakes practice and emotional intelligence.

> Teaching young boys to become men who aren’t afraid to break from the group can start at home, at a young age, with low stakes.
## Fathers model emotional openness
Fathers show sons how to communicate openly and apologize when wrong.

> Children learn a great deal from what they observe. When boys see the men in their lives communicate openly, apologize when they are wrong, respect others, manage frustration appropriately, and treat women and other people with dignity, those lessons can be incredibly powerful.
## Christopher Everett’s approach
Christopher Everett teaches his son to speak up without feeling diminished.

> I want him to be able to say when he’s scared, hurt, embarrassed or wrong without feeling like those things diminish him.
## The Cornell lawsuit impact
The Cornell lawsuit sparked discussions about teaching boys to speak up on consent and boundaries.

> Since news about the lawsuit against the 'Cornell 7' broke, the internet has been rife with discourse about how Millennial parents are 'raising sons differently.'
## Key question for parents
Parents ask how to raise boys who will take risks and leave the room.

> The question parents are asking after Cornell is really how to raise a boy who will take the risk and leave the room.
## No single solution
No generation has figured out how to 'raise boys correctly' but peers are building emotional vocabulary.

> Without confusing emotional openness with an absence of responsibility or discipline, he added.
## Key takeaway

Millennial parents are teaching sons to speak up about consent and boundaries after the Cornell lawsuit.