Preface

Over the past few years, there has been a rapid expansion of global commentary relating to men’s health equity (Griffith et al., 2019; Baker, 2020; Griffith, 2020; Smith et al., 2020; Smith et al., 2020). It has provided a new, and arguably more helpful, gender-health lens from which to view the health and social inequities experienced by marginalised and vulnerable groups of boys and men (Griffith et al., 2019; Griffith, 2020; Smith et al., 2020). Indeed, it has enabled a more nuanced discourse about the health and well-being of specific sub-populations of men to emerge, including that relating to men of colour (Jones et al., 2012; Griffith et al., 2019; Smith et al., 2019, 2021). Most recently, there has been increased interest in the health inequities experienced by adolescent boys and young men of colour (Cunningham & White, 2019; Smith et al., 2021). This book helps to expand on this discussion.

Our primary aim, in this book, is to explore what the health promotion community has done, and can continue to do, to reduce the health and social inequities facing boys and young men of colour across the globe. While there are pockets of health promotion innovation strategies targeting boys and young men of colour, these strategies are typically poorly funded, time-bound, and seldom scaled to a level to meet population health needs (Smith et al., 2021).