It is hard to be a boy in South Africa these days. A recent survey of 30 schools in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province found that, across all races, male students and teachers experience uncertainty about their role and status and a sense of displacement due to the loss of their privileged space in society. The study examined how masculinity is constructed and maintained in schools to better understand how deeply-held notions of masculinity lead to high-risk behaviour for HIV infection among men and women.