OPINION: Netflix’s Adolescence Is a wake-up call but forgets the victim
The programme everyone is talking about asks us to confront how misogyny is normalised and how silence enables it
It’s all-over social media. People are talking about it around the dinner table. The prime minister wants to have it shown in schools.
Netflix’s Adolescence has struck a national nerve—and rightly so. It’s a gripping, unsettling drama that follows the story of two parents whose lives are upended when their 13-year-old son is accused of murdering a girl from school. As the show unfolds, it becomes clear how even loving, attentive parents can be blindsided by the toxic influences shaping their children.
It is a powerful exploration of radicalisation, toxic masculinity, and how dangerous ideas can take hold in plain sight. But while Adolescence succeeds in sparking urgent conversations, it also does something painfully familiar: it forgets the victim.
The girl at the centre of this tragedy is barely visible. At worst, the narrative edges toward blaming her for her killer’s actions. Her best friend, another young girl, is portrayed more as an aggressor than a grieving teenager. There’s one brief but striking moment when a female police officer points out how easily victims are erased. But even that feels ironic, because the show does exactly that.
And yet, Adolescence has achieved something important. It has brought violence against women and girls (VAWG) into the national conversation. It asks us to confront how misogyny is normalised in our homes, our schools, our online spaces—and how silence enables it.
One of the most heartbreaking scenes features the boy’s devastated parents, struggling to understand how their “gormless” child could commit such a violent act. Tearful and broken, they reflect on what more they could have done. It is a sobering reminder of the role we all play: as parents, as educators, as communities.
That’s why prevention matters.
At Jewish Women’s Aid, we work to stop the ripple effect of harm before it starts. Through our education and prevention programmes in schools, universities, synagogues, and workplaces, we empower young people to challenge toxic norms and recognise coercive behaviours. We engage boys and girls alike to build a culture rooted in empathy, respect, and equality.
Because when we educate and intervene early, we don’t just change one story—we change the culture that allows these stories to happen.
That’s what Adolescence shows so starkly: the ripple effect of a boy’s radicalisation, of silence in friendship groups, of adults not knowing what signs to look for. The impact radiates outward, devastating everyone in its path. But what the show doesn’t fully explore—and what we must—is the opposite ripple effect: the one created when we speak up, step in, and educate early.
Jewish Women’s Aid is proud of our work in schools, youth movement and on campus – working with children and young people to discuss important themes of healthy relationships, consent and boundaries. We are delighted to be working with PaJeS on two important initiatives.
Firstly, we are holding a webinar for parents on 8 May to help unpack the issues raised and share tools to support our children navigate through these pressures. Additionally, we will be calling on schools to encourage male staff to join a new joint initiative to create male champions in schools, who can provide strong, positive, role models in schools. For more information, click here.
If Adolescence left you thinking, talking, questioning: GOOD. Now take the next step. Join us. Support us. Be part of the change.
- Sam Clifford, chief executive, Jewish Women’s Aid
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