Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson reflects on her experience in government and makes the case for why policymakers must be intentional about supporting both boys and girls. Drawing on insights from AIBM President Richard Reeves’Of Boys and Men, she highlights how communities, families and institutions all play a role in ensuring every individual has the opportunity to thrive.
Transcript
Utah Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson:
My name is Deidre Henderson, and I’m lieutenant governor of the great state of Utah. I’m the second woman in 130-year history at the state to be lieutenant governor. I have a point — and it wasn’t to get applause — but thank you.
In 2013, I was sworn in as a state senator, and I’m a Republican. There are 29 state senators. At the time, 23 of them were Republicans and six of them were Democrats. I doubled the number of Republican women in the Utah State Senate — we went from one to two.
When I left the Utah State Senate to become lieutenant governor in 2021, there were more Republican men named Dan in the Utah State Senate than there were Republican women. We had three Dans and two women.
One thing I learned when I got to the Senate — it was very lopsided — I didn’t think it mattered if we had all men in the legislature or that there weren’t more women. I just didn’t think it mattered. Policy is policy. But when I got there, I realized that it did matter.
The reason it mattered is because I had a different life experience than my male colleagues. I likened it to walking around with one eye open. When you’re seeing out of one eye, what you see is good, it’s real, it’s there — but it’s not the whole picture. You need both eyes open to see the whole picture.
When I became lieutenant governor, my eyes were opened further in 2023, when the governor asked me and several members of our cabinet and senior advisers to read Richard Reeves’ book Of Boys and Men. There were quite a few female senior advisers and cabinet members who read that book, and we had a lot of discussions and invited Mr. Reeves to come out.
What I discovered was that we have been so intentional about girls over the past few decades — in very good ways, healthy ways, ways that we need to keep doing. But during that time, we stopped being as intentional about boys. “Success and thriving” is not just a natural occurrence — it is something that comes after intention.
We had stopped being intentional about the way we talk about men and the way we educate our boys — that they learn differently than girls, more side-to-side than face-to-face — and that we have to start paying attention to this.
Poverty affects boys differently than it affects girls. Girls have a higher likelihood of exiting poverty when they grow up than boys do if they grow up in poverty. These were all eye-opening statistics and concepts that I had never really thought about, and that our administration had never really thought about in that way.
Over the past few years, we have tried to become more intentional. I think the worst thing we can do is believe in a false choice — that one must sacrifice the other — that you can’t be intentional about both boys and girls, that you can’t be intentional about both men and women.
A year ago was our inauguration for our second term as governor and lieutenant governor. In my inauguration address, I talked about the power of “and” — this idea that our administration’s focus on building for the future rests on the fundamental belief in the power of “and.” You heard that a lot today.
We can hold two thoughts at once. We can want success for boys and girls, for men and women. We can look to what specific policy changes need to be made to help men and women, boys and girls. We can look to what institutional, societal, religious, community and family institutions need to be doing to make sure that everyone has a chance to thrive.
A couple of days ago, we had a literacy and reading symposium. The first lady is really leading on literacy in our state, especially in early literacy. She said something very powerful: “Our literacy problems are a community problem, and they will require community solutions.”
I suggest the same thing here today — that the problems our boys are facing and our men are facing are community problems, and they will require community solutions. There is a place for government. There is a place for policy. But that’s not the only thing that’s going to help.
I hope we can all continue to focus on making sure that every individual has the opportunity, the tools and the skills they need to make the most of their life — to find purpose, to find meaning, to be the best person: the best man, the best husband, the best father; the best woman, the best mother, the best daughter; whatever they are.
Because they have the tools, and they know that they have a place in society wherever they are.
So, thank you. Thank you for being here. Thank you for what you have taught me. I think we’ve all learned a lot from each other, and we have a lot of work to do. God bless all of you.
Watch the full event to hear from Gov. Spencer J. Cox, Richard Reeves, Ian Rowe and other leaders as they explore the challenges facing men and boys — and the solutions to strengthen their health, vocation and sense of purpose.
CommentaryEducation & Skills, Employment
Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson on why boys need more intentional support
This clip is from the Sutherland Institute’s event on the well-being of men and boys, held Jan. 8, 2026, in Salt Lake City.
Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson reflects on her experience in government and makes the case for why policymakers must be intentional about supporting both boys and girls. Drawing on insights from AIBM President Richard Reeves’ Of Boys and Men, she highlights how communities, families and institutions all play a role in ensuring every individual has the opportunity to thrive.
Transcript
Utah Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson:
My name is Deidre Henderson, and I’m lieutenant governor of the great state of Utah. I’m the second woman in 130-year history at the state to be lieutenant governor. I have a point — and it wasn’t to get applause — but thank you.
In 2013, I was sworn in as a state senator, and I’m a Republican. There are 29 state senators. At the time, 23 of them were Republicans and six of them were Democrats. I doubled the number of Republican women in the Utah State Senate — we went from one to two.
When I left the Utah State Senate to become lieutenant governor in 2021, there were more Republican men named Dan in the Utah State Senate than there were Republican women. We had three Dans and two women.
One thing I learned when I got to the Senate — it was very lopsided — I didn’t think it mattered if we had all men in the legislature or that there weren’t more women. I just didn’t think it mattered. Policy is policy. But when I got there, I realized that it did matter.
The reason it mattered is because I had a different life experience than my male colleagues. I likened it to walking around with one eye open. When you’re seeing out of one eye, what you see is good, it’s real, it’s there — but it’s not the whole picture. You need both eyes open to see the whole picture.
When I became lieutenant governor, my eyes were opened further in 2023, when the governor asked me and several members of our cabinet and senior advisers to read Richard Reeves’ book Of Boys and Men. There were quite a few female senior advisers and cabinet members who read that book, and we had a lot of discussions and invited Mr. Reeves to come out.
What I discovered was that we have been so intentional about girls over the past few decades — in very good ways, healthy ways, ways that we need to keep doing. But during that time, we stopped being as intentional about boys. “Success and thriving” is not just a natural occurrence — it is something that comes after intention.
We had stopped being intentional about the way we talk about men and the way we educate our boys — that they learn differently than girls, more side-to-side than face-to-face — and that we have to start paying attention to this.
Poverty affects boys differently than it affects girls. Girls have a higher likelihood of exiting poverty when they grow up than boys do if they grow up in poverty. These were all eye-opening statistics and concepts that I had never really thought about, and that our administration had never really thought about in that way.
Over the past few years, we have tried to become more intentional. I think the worst thing we can do is believe in a false choice — that one must sacrifice the other — that you can’t be intentional about both boys and girls, that you can’t be intentional about both men and women.
A year ago was our inauguration for our second term as governor and lieutenant governor. In my inauguration address, I talked about the power of “and” — this idea that our administration’s focus on building for the future rests on the fundamental belief in the power of “and.” You heard that a lot today.
We can hold two thoughts at once. We can want success for boys and girls, for men and women. We can look to what specific policy changes need to be made to help men and women, boys and girls. We can look to what institutional, societal, religious, community and family institutions need to be doing to make sure that everyone has a chance to thrive.
A couple of days ago, we had a literacy and reading symposium. The first lady is really leading on literacy in our state, especially in early literacy. She said something very powerful: “Our literacy problems are a community problem, and they will require community solutions.”
I suggest the same thing here today — that the problems our boys are facing and our men are facing are community problems, and they will require community solutions. There is a place for government. There is a place for policy. But that’s not the only thing that’s going to help.
I hope we can all continue to focus on making sure that every individual has the opportunity, the tools and the skills they need to make the most of their life — to find purpose, to find meaning, to be the best person: the best man, the best husband, the best father; the best woman, the best mother, the best daughter; whatever they are.
Because they have the tools, and they know that they have a place in society wherever they are.
So, thank you. Thank you for being here. Thank you for what you have taught me. I think we’ve all learned a lot from each other, and we have a lot of work to do. God bless all of you.
Watch the full event to hear from Gov. Spencer J. Cox, Richard Reeves, Ian Rowe and other leaders as they explore the challenges facing men and boys — and the solutions to strengthen their health, vocation and sense of purpose.
Watch the full event
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