Working with Men and Boys to Prevent Domestic Violence
Josh Edward, DELTA project state coordinator with the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual AssaultIncluding and engaging men and boys in domestic violence prevention efforts was the focus of a KCSDV training in May in Topeka.
Josh Edward, DELTA Project State Coordinator with the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, trained participants on the basics of prevention, its place in regards to intervention efforts, and how to include and sustain men and boys in the movement to prevent first-time domestic and dating violence.
"Men are already allies, albeit silent ones many times," Edward said. "We just need to give men more opportunities to be allies."
"I hope the attendees will recognize the need for prevention and that both intervention and prevention are needed if social change is to occur," Edward said.
He explained that prevention is more than just a one-time presentation about the warning signs of dating violence.
"We need to recognize that raising awareness about the warning signs is important, but that is not the same thing as students having tools and skills they need to have healthy relationships, which is prevention," Edward said.
Prevention would include actually learning how to communicate in a relationship, what acceptable expressions of anger look like, and for boys and men to learn how to recognize and address their own issues around sexism.
"Young men should be questioning social norms and what they think of as their masculinity and ask what does a man act like," Edward said. "I hope we build a kind of collaborative dialogue across communities, states and nations about how men are socialized and what mens and cultures expectations are around masculinity."
Prevention, Edward said, is wide-ranging and activities should be happening on many levels of our society, referring to the Social Ecology Model that guides domestic violence prevention efforts. For more information about this model, read KCSDVs Summer 2006 newsletter at www.kcsdv.org/resources/newsletters/2006/summer06.html.
The concept of prevention is an ongoing and long-term process and is about social change. It is not just giving a one-time presentation to a group of people. It is about changing conditions that support intimate partner violence, promoting conditions that inhibit intimate partner violence, and promoting the behaviors you want people to adopt.
Healthy Relationships Tools for Men and Boys
~ Josh Edward
- Men and boys learning how to communicate within a relationship
- Men and boys learning what acceptable expressions of anger look like
- Men and boys learning how to recognize and address their own issues around sexism
- Men and boys learning to question social norms regarding masculinity and what "real" men and "real" women act like
- KCSDV's Summer 2006 Newsletter
- Michael Kaufman's 7 P's of Men's Violence
- Toolkit for Working with Men and Boys
- Men Can Stop Rape
- The White Ribbon Campaign