men, masculinities and gender politics

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Allowing Men to Care: Fatherhood Project in South Africa 05 Apr 2012

In South Africa, men are increasingly rejecting widespread stereotypes of manhood by stepping forward to challenge gender roles that compromise their well-being and the health of their partners and their families. This case study documents the Sonke Gender Justice Network’s Fatherhood project, which was designed to reduce HIV transmission and address related problems, such as gender-based violence, women’s overwhelming burden of care, and the preponderance of children in need of care and support.

See http://www.icrw.org/publications/allowing-men-care for the report regarding this work.

Gender Stereotypical Policing in Advertisement: Act Your Gender 14 Mar 2012

Television advertisements often portray men and women in very different roles, engaging in behavior that is often “safe” to perform in regards to one’s gender. Women are usually seen as domestic, marveling over the wonders of detergent, or as gentle nurturers and housewives who love preparing dinner for the family. They are also often depicted as sex objects of men’s desires. Men, on the other hand, are often depicted as workers, as engaging in masculine hobbies and leisurely activities, as sexually active, and on the prowl.

Men for Women's Choice 13 Mar 2012

Voice your support for Men for Women's Choice.

Like many men around the world, we think women should control their own bodies. We are part of a decentralized effort to encourage men to speak out in support of women’s right to safe birth control and abortion.

Angry men's groups 12 Mar 2012

Men's rights groups are the focus of a series of articles published by the Southern Poverty Law Centre.

Stories of Resistance and Stories of Change: Engagingmen e-magazine 09 Mar 2012

In celebration of International Women's Day, Engagingmen is pleased to share with you the second issue of the Engagingmen.net community e-magazine 'Stories of Resistance and Stories of Change' (http://www.engagingmen.net/resource/stories-resistance-and-stories-change).

This series is designed as a forum for us to reflect on the innovations, successes and challenges we face in practice and to explore the various themes and theories that inform our work.

Man-centric media impairs our ability to see the sexism in porn 09 Mar 2012

Nearly all mainstream pornography is depicted from a man’s perspective. This may be obvious, as in Point of View (POV) type scenes which are shot as if through the eyes of the male porn performer, or made evident through the fact that the woman (or women) take up most of the picture or screen (they are the ones to be looked at), or even apparent through the kind of sex and sex acts being depicted; Ass To Mouth (the only purpose of which is to grant the male performer and viewers additional pleasure through the degradation of the women involved) is a good example.

Mobilising Men in Practice: Challenging Sexual and Gender-based Violence in Institutional Settings: Tools, Stories, Lessons 06 Feb 2012

Calls for greater male participation are now a commonplace in work on sexual and reproductive health and rights. The need to engage men in efforts to prevent sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and promote sexual health and gender equality is well accepted. But we know less about the optimal forms of such engagement, particularly when it comes to moving beyond a focus on changing individual men’s attitudes and behaviours.

YMOST: Young Men of Strength campaign 2011

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