In the fight for gender equality it could be argued that men are often short-changed, now obviously this is because for so long men have been the gender with the most opportunities but too often we can forget that there are some problems they deal with that we women just don’t have to face. This is why in 1999, Dr Jerome Teelucksingh from Port of Spain, Trinidad created International Men’s Day, a day when male gender-specific problems would be addressed and great male role-models could be celebrated. He placed it on the 19th November, his late father’s birthday, but how many of us were actually aware that this day just passed us by?
The official website for IMD states that “Objectives of International Men’s Day include a focus on men’s and boy’s health, improving gender relations, promoting gender equality, and highlighting positive male role models. It is an occasion for men to celebrate their achievements and contributions, in particular their contributions to community, family, marriage, and child care while highlighting the discrimination against them.” It has now spread to over 50 countries and been endorsed by the UN.
The reaction to IMD is varied, it has been mocked and praised in equal measure and been met with both hostility and warmth. Many of those who front charities that work with the cause have found it difficult to get sufficient press as it is often not taken as seriously as it should, but they have hope that a change in mood is occurring and gradually people are beginning to listen.
The fact is when you look at what IMD is really trying to say there really is nothing to be upset about, the issues it tackles are widely-recognized, uncontroversial social injustices faced by men. Some of the main problems are those of homelessness, suicide and substance abuse which all disproportionately affect men. A lot of punishment is laid down upon the men who commit acts of brutality, violence and aggression of, but the victims, who are not given half as much attention, are most likely to be men themselves.
Such a movement is not a threat to feminism, in fact it works well along side it, both want to end male violence and criminality and bring equality to the family and home. For example nearly one quarter of children in America live in mother-only families with 35% of these children never seeing their fathers, and even in families with both parents present the average father spends less than 10 minutes a day one on one with their child. Though they may put forward different reasons this is a state of affairs both groups believe to be an issue that should be talked about. There are many other campaigns that both have in common as well, the underlying message is after all equality above all else.
So if you ever hear a guy scoffing at International Women’s Day, and asking why there’s no male equivalent you can now prove them wrong. The more people know about it the more can be done, so spread the word if you can! After all we love a lot of the guys in our lives, so why wouldn’t you want to celebrate the contribution they make?
Image credits: internationalmensday.com, free-press-release.com