10 Things Men Can Do to Prevent Gender Violence
- Approach gender violence as a MEN'S issue involving men
of all ages and socioeconomic, racial and ethnic backgrounds. View
men not only as perpetrators or possible offenders, but as
empowered bystanders who can confront abusive peers
- If a brother, friend, classmate, or teammate is abusing
his female partner -- or is disrespectful or abusive to girls
and women in general -- don't look the other way. If
you feel comfortable doing so, try to talk to him about it. Urge
him to seek help. Or if you don't know what to do, consult
a friend, a parent, a professor, or a counselor. DON'T
REMAIN SILENT.
- Have the courage to look inward. Question your own
attitudes. Don't be defensive when something you do or say
ends up hurting someone else. Try hard to understand how your
own attitudes and actions might inadvertently perpetuate sexism
and violence, and work toward changing them.
- If you suspect that a woman close to you is being abused
or has been sexually assaulted, gently ask if you can help.
- If you are emotionally, psychologically, physically, or
sexually abusive to women, or have been in the past, seek
professional help NOW.
- Be an ally to women who are working to end all forms of
gender violence. Support the work of campus-based women's
centers. Attend "Take Back the Night" rallies
and other public events. Raise money for community-based
rape crisis centers and battered women's shelters. If
you belong to a team or fraternity, or another student group,
organize a fundraiser.
- Recognize and speak out against homophobia and gay-bashing. Discrimination
and violence against lesbians and gays are wrong in and of
themselves. This abuse also has direct links to sexism
(eg. the sexual orientation of men who speak out against sexism
is often questioned, a conscious or unconscious strategy intended
to silence them. This is a key reason few men do so).
- Attend programs, take courses, watch films, and read articles
and books about multicultural masculinities, gender inequality,
and the root causes of gender violence. Educate yourself
and others about how larger social forces affect the conflicts
between individual men and women.
- Don't fund sexism. Refuse to purchase any magazine, rent
any video, subscribe to any Web site, or buy any music that
portrays girls or women in a sexually degrading or abusive
manner. Protest sexism in the media.
- Mentor and teach young boys about how to be men in ways
that don't involve degrading or abusing girls and women. Volunteer
to work with gender violence prevention programs, including
anti-sexist men's programs. Lead by example
Copyright 1999, Jackson Katz. www.jacksonkatz.com
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