If it’s really ‘catastrophic’ for a boys’ school to go coed, I fear for the future of gen Z

‘You can’t help but think they’re really misty-eyed about a time when men’s dominance in public and political life passed without challenge.’ Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

Some news from the antipodes: a private boys’ school in Sydney is planning to allow female pupils for the first time. Before you move on with your life, spare a thought for the parents protesting against the switch as though it heralds the end of man.

Last week a news clip went viral, showing a small group objecting to the “catastrophic” decision outside the gates of Newington college. Never mind that the proposed change to coeducational won’t take full effect until 2033, when their sons will have moved on. These parents are concerned about tradition, and – to quote one worried father from the frontlines – the “woke, toxic-masculinity type palaver” threatening to undo it.