MEN’S RESOURCES INTERNATIONAL

Mission
Men’s Resources International (MRI) is a non-governmental organization headquartered in the United States. MRI’s mission is to promote positive masculinity and help end men’s violence by:

1. Supporting men’s initiatives in diverse communities around the world
2. Developing a global network for men committed to gender equality and ending violence and oppression

Background
We face a global crisis - as well as an opportunity — in how we challenge and engage men in the personal, cultural and institutional changes needed to eliminate violence and oppression in our families, our communities and our world. Over the last 30 years women’s activism has inspired men around the world to examine the effects of masculinity and patriarchy on their lives, and explore their role in promoting gender equality and ending violence. In some communities these men have joined together to support each other in this exploration, and to experiment with strategies for engaging other men and working with women to challenge sexism and end violence

From this growing interest in engaging, educating and organizing men, the vision for Men’s Resources International was born. With over 20 years of experience serving thousands of men and women, boys and girls at men’s resource centers and other community and social change organizations, founders of Men’s Resources International are uniquely prepared to carry this vision.

Vision
A new vision for culture and society is at the heart of Men’s Resource International.

In this vision all men and boys have access to resources and support for living free of violence and oppression. Community-based men’s initiatives around the world collaborate with women’s organizations to promote peace and respect in all relationships. A global leadership network of men and women share information and resources to address individual and collective legacies of violence and oppression.

Values
• Indigenous wisdom and leadership. We use the processes of consciousness-raising and popular education to explore personal experiences as rooted in cultural legacies of strength and trauma.We seek out and promote grassroots leadership.
• The connectedness of all life. We understand ourselves as part of the problem and part of the solution. We sit in a circle. We honor and listen to the natural world. We challenge us/them, either/or assumptions. We approach all people with compassion and respect.
• Diversity in all its forms. We are creating an organization that expects and requires attention to diversity in everything we do. We experience and celebrate our diversity as our greatest resource and a foundation of our strength.
• Relationship as the foundation for healing, organizing and activism. We learn from our interactions with each other how historical trauma has instilled violence and oppression into our lives. From this shared connection we are mobilized and inspired to work for a collective empowerment.
• Challenging systems of oppression. We recognize and challenge institutional and cultural patterns that avoid and suppress diversity. We listen to voices that have been silenced and marginalized. We see our work building an empowered constituency, organizations and networks as part of a movement for social change.
• Practicing non-violence. We support each other in recognizing and interrupting patterns of violence within ourselves. We use and teach “compassionate confrontation” when challenging violence in others.
• Practicing faith. We recognize we are part of a large-scale, long-term process of change. (patience, spirituality, hope)
• Self-reflection and openness to feedback and change. We seek feedback about how our actions affect others, especially those who have experienced violence and oppression. We are willing to change our attitudes and behaviors to become better allies for social justice and peace.

Contact

info@mensresourcesinternational.org

www.mensresourcesinternational.org

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DAUGHTERS OF VIRTUE & EMPOWERMENT INITIATIVE (DOVENET)

Daughters of Virtue and Empowerment Initiative (DOVENET) is an independent women driven non-governmental organization.

DOVENET was established in 2001 in Ebonyi State Nigeria to strengthen and empower women and young people to make them confident contributors to development, working under a five point thematic agenda: 

1. Human Rights, Peace Building and Conflict Resolution
2. Networking and Coalition Building
3. Training and Capacity Building for women, men and young people in Democracy and Governance
4. Community Development
5. Reproductive Health/HIV/AIDS

Our Vision: a world in which women and young people are given a voice through elimination of violence to guarantee effective contribution to the development of their areas.

Our methods include organizing Training Workshops; Civic Education; Social and Legislative Advocacy; Library/Resource Centre Services; Research and Publication; and Enlightenment Campaigns.

DOVENET has been involved in human rights issues since inception — especially women’s rights — and has collaborated with other Women’s Right organizations within and outside the country to address the issue of Violence Against Women and developing a peaceful society.

Gender Based Violence has become a major challenge not only in Nigeria but all over the world. This is because violence against women knows no boundaries of culture, age, class, ethnicity and creed.

Issues of violence against women are often trivialized and termed a domestic matter leading to its perpetuation. DOVENET has continued to create awareness on this issue by educating women to stand up for their rights. Earlier initiatives on Elimination of Gender Based Violence have been women-centered but it has been discovered that because men are largely the perpetrators of violence, it becomes necessary that men should contribute to its elimination. It was against this backdrop that DOVENET after attending the Beijing + 10 Conference in 2005 and listening to Men’s Initiatives in the United States, decided to engage gender-sensitive men and women to set up the Ebonyi Men’s Resource Centre in July 2005.

It is our vision to not only build the capacity of members and community members but to construct a befitting Men’s Resource Centre where women and men and boys will be trained in skills on Advocacy, Conflict Resolution and Seminars for Media and other strategic groups in eliminating gender based violence. The centre will also serve as a drop in centre for men who need to calm their nerves and receive some counseling. The centre will also help in training mentees on gender issues to help them develop positive masculinity.

Contact

dovenetng@yahoo.com

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WHY A MEN’S CENTER
Steven Botkin, Director Men’s Resources International

Twenty-three years ago a small group of men decided to create a local organization to promote community and anti-sexist activism among men. We were inspired by feminism, the early literature of the “men’s movement” and our own personal experiences with challenging the dominating forms of masculinity. We wanted to create male identities and masculine culture that more authentically reflected the diverse realities of men’s lives. We knew that the oppression of women and the dehumanization of men were two sides of the same coin. We knew that homophobia was directly linked to men’s fear about expressing who we really are, and that racism, classism and ableism were demanding that we fight for one “right” way to be a man. And we knew that many truths about men, truths that we all needed to hear, were buried under the weight of the power and privilege we were offered if only we would keep silent.

Twenty-three years after the founding of the Men’s Resource Center of Western Massachusetts, men in diverse communities around the United States, and throughout the world, are organizing. The MRC has served as a model of what is possible – a vibrant, grassroots, community-based men’s center that is more than a passing fad catching the eye of the media. And now, Men’s Resources International is supporting the development of men's programs in diverse communities, and building a global network of these initiatives working in alliance with women. If men's centers are truly going to become an ongoing part of the fabric of our society we all need to understand and support the reasons for having a men's program in our communities. Because few of us have any of experience of a men's center, and because there are many voices of suspicion and fear, we need careful, and repeated explanations of why a men's center is so valuable. Here are some of our answers to the question, “Why a men’s center?”

Because men are hurting. Many men are in pain. This pain can be physical, mental or emotional, usually all three. Some men recognize it, many men do not. Often men try not to pay attention to their pain. We have learned to "suck it up", "hold it in", "walk it off". We believe that admitting our pain to others is an admission of weakness, proof of not being a "real man", letting others down. And we know it is frequently an invitation to be shamed and abused. We often end up isolated and afraid in our pain. Addictive and abusive behaviors are one way we attempt to cope with this hidden pain.

At a men's center a safe place is created where men are encouraged to respect the full range of our feelings, where we do not have to deny our pain, our fear, our anger or our joy, where men come together to witness and support each other in expressing ourselves clearly and honestly. We break through our fears and learn that our greatest strength is in our vulnerability with ourselves and others.

Because men are hurting others. Violence in our relationships, in our families, on our streets, and in our schools continues to be one of the most significant social issues of our time. Much (although not all) of this violence seems to be done by men and teen-age boys. Although we have a growing number of legal and social services for victims of violence, our society has not yet developed an array of effective resources for addressing the perpetrators.

At a men's center men join together in learning how to recognize and take responsibility for our patterns of hurtful behavior. We examine how the social and psychological dimensions of masculinity have affected us personally and created the conditions for violence and abuse. We share and support each other's efforts to change these patterns, individually and culturally. We join as allies with women in challenging cultural and institutional systems of domination and control. We offer each other and our society models of recovery, safety, empowerment and hope.

Because men are divided against each other. From an early age males learn to compete against each other. We are taught to think about ourselves literally as potential soldiers fighting other men to the death in combat. Other men are seen as enemies, dangerous, someone from whom I have to defend myself and my family, someone competing for limited resources. We have used differences of race, nationality, class, and sexual orientation as battlegrounds for our fear of other men.

At a men's center men come together with an agreement of honesty and respect for each other. We learn to put aside our fears and create a culture where we can practice understanding rather than winning, communication rather than fighting, sharing rather than defending. We become a place where men from different backgrounds, lifestyles and communities can learn to feel safe with, listen to and care for each other.

Because masculinity is in transition. Our understanding of what it takes to be a successful man is going through big changes. We are being called upon to develop new ways of relating to our emotions, our partners/wives, our children, and our work. This can easily leave us feeling confused, disoriented and overwhelmed.

At a men's center men find others who are facing these changes. Together we resist the pressures to adapt to a rigid, dominating masculinity, and support each other in developing diverse ways of being a man that express our highest values and visions. We are creating a new, more healthy culture of masculinity.

Because men want to help. Many men care about violence, oppression, inequality, liberation and healing. Although we may want to take a stand, speak out, make a difference, we often feel uncertain, scared, isolated, silenced and powerless.

At a men's center men join together with other men who want to make a contribution to the lives of the men, women and children in our communities. Together we find ways to take actions that give voice to our caring and our commitment. We learn how to work collaboratively with each other and with women, developing shared power and leadership. A men's center offers training and opportunities for men's leadership and community activism.

The best answer to why a men's center, of course, may be simply to look at the Men's Resource Centers that now exist - in New Mexico, Texas, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts, and the individuals and organizations in Canada, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, Zambia, Nigeria, Rwanda, and Japan who have been inspired to begin to develop their own men’s programs.

Why a men's center? Because it makes a unique and significant difference in the life of individual men, women and children, and the health of our communities and our society.

Adapted from an essay first published in Voice Male magazine, Fall 1997 For information: Back to top.