Men's Group

http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=330183987

After glancing at the text, I read the transcript word for word out loud to my legally blind wife. I'm a sensitive guy, but I don't cry at the drop of a hat. So, I wasn't prepared for what I read in the following excerpt:

CORNISH: You mentioned that coaches are either transactional - what can you do for me - or transformational. On the field, how does that play out? Are you basically talking about the screamers here?

EHRMANN: The screamers, yeah. I think there's a lot of screamers. There's a lot of shouters. There's a lot of shamers. My approach is this - boy, you're in the middle of the game and some kid's having a tough time. They get beat. I tell all my players, come on over to me during the game and I'll give you a hug. And you think about the power of a hug versus swearing, shouting, shaming at some kid. Boy, you know, when I played ball I hated - some kid would get a knee injury. Your teammate would go down and that coach would say move the practice down 20 yards and leave that kid laying there. Boy, as coaches, we get kneeled down next to the kid. You affirm the tears, the pain, the emotions, and then you bring all the team around to say how can we help Bobby? He's one of us. He's done so much. He had so many dreams. So you teach them how to build authentic community as men caring and loving for each other.

Joe said, "I tell all my players, come on over to me during the game and I'll give you a hug." When I had read the last word of this sentence to my wife, I broke down. Without going into all the reasons why, I always felt cut off from my peers when I was a boy; and there was not a single man in my life whom I wanted to be like. If this is too personal, please excuse. But it's the truth. I told my wife the male ego is actually quite fragile. She told me most women know this.

Joe's statement on Steubenville is amazing to me. He's right! (By the way, perhaps the second word in the second sentence should be "no" instead of "that.&quot

CORNISH: Can you talk about a particular incident that really drives that home for you?

EHRMANN: Well, I think the Steubenville, Ohio, rape case - two high school boys - 16-year-old girl - drunk, passed out - hundreds of pictures taken - tweets. And that one person had the moral clarity or moral courage to intervene in the midst of that. Two boys sentenced to prison - had no idea about consent. They weren't taught this stuff. A community tried to cover it up. Boy, I think that thing is played out and could play out at any high school. Boys have to be taught about - they have to have the moral clarity and the moral courage to speak up. That's not going to end. Women can't end it. It's not going to end until we raise up a generation of men that have the courage to call out other men on behalf of women in this country.

This is quite a refreshing change from the likes of Poppy Harlow and others who should know better.