#4: Men Working with Men Against Violence
By Guest Author Cameron Rasmussen with Art from Emily Simons
So much of the violence (physical and otherwise) that happens in communities is committed by men. Given this, men have a particular responsibility in working to prevent, intervene and respond to interpersonal and community violence, and to participate in organizing against violence of all kinds including state violence, and the violence of ideologies and systems of domination like patriarchy, white supremacy, and colonization. And in particular, men have a responsibility to work with other men. Men working with men is not without contradiction, and is vulnerable to reenacting the power imbalances and harmful dynamics at the roots of violence. Still, this work is necessary and critical to reducing violence, and to strengthening our movements. And the only way through contradiction, and vulnerability, is through.
The good news: we have many examples to learn from, to replicate, and to catalyze more and more efforts of men working with other men against violence.
Men Against Sexism groups began in the 1970s in an effort to address male supremacy within social movements. Here is a pamphlet from one of the groups from 1981.
The Challenging Male Supremacy Project began in 2008 and while it is no longer active, they created and left many resources for others to pick up where they left off, including a nine-session study into action program.
More recent community-based examples include the Uprooting Patriarchy: Healing and Accountability for Men workshops, and the Community Response to Sexual Assault Leadership Course.
Sneak Peek: Explore groups, like Challenging Male Supremacy, who have left a lasting impact on liberatory approaches to violence throughout history by visiting Interrupting Criminalization’s new interactive timeline: A History of Transformative Justice
And there are groups that already exist ready to receive men who want to be in community with other men, to heal, to be accountable, and to transform:
Creative Masculinity offers drop-in groups, courses, and 1-1 support for men, including a course on shame and accountability.
Black Men Build offers men’s circles, national days of service, survival programs, and political and civic education.
All Kings offers circles and retreats for men impacted by the criminal legal system.
The hard news: there are far too few men working with men against violence, and we need many many more men, and grassroots formations doing this work. It is not easy. Doing this work as men, and growing groups and projects requires thoughtful and relational development rooted in solidarity with women and trans and gender non-conforming people and formations. It requires accountability to others and to the larger movements for justice, and against domination. And it requires moving through the contradictions, the mistakes, and the harm so that we can heal, become accountable, and transform ourselves while we work to transform our world.
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