07.01.2022

Men from Switzerland and Zimbabwe questioned existing "male myths" and male privileges

Men engage: A debate is needed on ‚positive masculinities‘....
Photo by Yasin Yusuf on Unsplash

FEPA "This summer we had an intensive intercultural debate on how young men can contribute to gender justice. This was prompted by the numerous indications from fepa partner organisations that successful work for gender justice must also involve men. So, we said to ourselves: let's find out how we can tackle this. And so, as men from Switzerland and Zimbabwe, we questioned existing "male myths" and male privileges. We analysed how socialiasation entrenches patriarchal domination. We debated how to overcome binary role models and how to publicly address the taboo and discrimination of diverse gender identities. We saw that the conventional male roles also harm the men themselves and that it is precisely this insight that can motivate us to question gender roles. We discussed our findings with many women. This conversation must continue until equality and justice between all genders are the norm and fundamental."