No one ever tells an infant to buck it up and stop crying. Babies, boy or girl, are treated with love, support and empathy. However, the same can’t be said for boys as they grow older and the message becomes “Toughen up and take it like a man.”

This pervasive cultural norm robs boys and young men of emotions – and in its worst instances, leads to aggression and violence. It’s the root cause of toxic masculinity that White Ribbon, a non-profit working to end gender-based violence and promote a new vision of masculinity, set out to address in a short film by Bensimon Byrne and Narrative.

“Boys Don’t Cry” follows one boy from childhood to adulthood and illustrates how a lifetime of social inputs results in the most toxic form of masculinity. When the film begins, the young boy is shown experiencing a wide range of emotions. As the story develops, he is told by society to bottle up his emotions as boys are not supposed to cry. The once innocent child gradually transforms into a hateful and violent teenager.

Each scene highlights the escalating nature of his toxic masculinity. The film was released on Canada’s National Anti-Bullying Day, and by partnering with national broadcasters, the Toronto Maple Leafs, and notable anti-bullying advocates Monica Lewinsky and George Takei, the group was able to reach 66 million impressions without a paid media budget and a mere $10,000 spent on production. The film is also now being used as a teaching tool in classrooms, and White Ribbon has since conducted 200 workshops, educating 10,000 young men and boys about the root causes of toxic masculinity in the hope that they will reject the rigid social definition of what it means to “be a man.”