7 News Belize

Men’s & Domestic Violence: Are They the Hurt People Who Hurt People?
posted (November 26, 2019)
There was another important event happening at the Biltmore Plaza Hotel. Today, the Spouses of the CARICOM Leaders Action Network, of which Special Envoy Kim Simplis-Barrow is a member, teamed up with the British High Commission, the National Women's Commission, and the United Nations Gender Theme Group to host the first-ever Men's Barbershop Forum.

The purpose of the forum is to discuss gender-based violence, and today, in a first, men from all parts of society were leading this discussion, instead of the women advocates who are pushing to end this social ill in Belize.

The event is a part of the 16 Days of Activism, and so, since men are often the perpetrators of gender-based violence against women and girls, we wondered what these male participants had to say on the topic.

Here's what the facilitators told us about the discussions:

Kim Simpliss-Barrow- Special Envoy, Women, and Children
"We have a very interesting and diverse panel, speaking to the issues of how can we engage our men and boys in addressing, in eliminating gender-based violence. I think it's an important subject to discuss. First of all, it is great to see so many men in the room. It is probably one of the first conferences that I have hosted, or I have been to where there are more men than women in attendance. To me, it really speaks to the fact that we do have men who are committed to combating gender-based violence. That is important because as we move forward in addressing this issue, we need our men to work with us."

Shane Joseph - UN Consultant/Facilitator
"I think it is important that we understand the root cause of violence. It is rooted in power and control in society. And oftentimes, we see the statistics, the empirical data tell us clearly disproportionately that men are the perpetrators of violence against females. And I think today's event is about bringing men together with an opportunity to share their views and give their narrative as it relates to addressing toxic masculinity, as it relates to addressing the role that men play in the equation, as opposed to just looking at victimization, and women who are disproportionately victims of violence. What role do men play? How are we able to create accountability, and take ownership of our behavior? And I believe when we do that, it gives us an opportunity to to sort of examine our own upbringing, our socialization, deconstruct toxic masculinity, address patriarchal systems, and get into a society where we can begin to bridge the gap of inequality, bridge the gap where our narrative is one that encourages collaboration between men and women in a society that is harmonious, peaceful and non-violent environment."

"Belize is more proactive, and Belize is at a place where we recognize that men must be at the table, where they are called out, and a call to action. One, there is ownership, 2, there is accountability, and 3, there is a desire to want to make a change."

Reporter
"I know it's momentous that you have these many men, but it's also a situation where we're having a discussion amongst the converted. These are the men who embody the type of personality the society would want to promote. How do you get this message to the people in the public, in the streets?"

Kim Simpliss-Barrow
"What we're trying to do, our next step from here is we will be trying to get a group of men who will become advocates, strong advocates. It's important because, in the room, we have men from all over Belize. But, you're right, we're speaking to the converted - some of them are converted, not all of them -but the idea is to get men as agents of change."

Shane Joseph
"We are creating a forum, where these men will hopefully become champions, and they can go into the streets, and into the communities, and begin to have dialog. Dialog and conversation open an opportunity for people to share their views, share their ideas and ideologies, and share their upbringing."

"Today's conversation is just the appetizer towards the entire menu that is on the table. These men will equip, they will become confident, and share that they're creating a sense of commitment."

This Barbershop Forum was dubbed, "Engaging Men and Boys to help combat gender-based violence."

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