As we celebrate National Women’s Day this year, let’s take some time as men (or the parents or educators of young men) to do a few things:
- Reflect on what we can do (and continue to do) to develop caring young men.
- Support existing initiatives to combat gender inequality and violence against women and children
- Challenge ourselves to do more to both raise awareness and make a tangible difference in this area.
As a psychologist at the BSU I’m constantly reminded of how vast the internet is and how much there is to learn. Just on Youtube alone I want to point people to two videos. In the midst of our busy schedules let’s watch just two videos to start with:
I wonder what your thoughts were when you watched those? Which did you prefer? Perhaps you think we’re preaching to the converted and that the issues are a lot more complex. What I think about when I watch those is this: Why shouldn’t we have frequent reminders to help us as men to be more caring rather than constant reminders about how we as men don’t care, and actively harm women?
Source: Facebook
I’m not saying we shouldn’t acknowledge all the violence and the trauma that men are responsible for. We should remember the Anene Booysens, the Reeva Steenkamps and the Karabo Mokoenas. But as Mr Reeler reminds us, we are in the business of helping to develop good men. Let’s celebrate that goodness. Which is why I’d like to challenge our young men to design a poster on being a good man. I’ll personally give R500 to the best entry. Email bsu@bishops.org.za with your entry before the end of August. Thanks for caring.
