Its likely that few women around the country will ever say that they have never been the victim of some kind of street harassment at the hands of passing men, and thats a huge problem. Offenses can range from off color cat calls and inappropriate pick up lines to unwanted physical advances and even serious bodily harm.
The documentary explores street harassment through a series of interviews with women recounting their own experiences and men discussing the roles they play as aggressors.
A working cut of the film is being shown tonight at The Theater at 500 William Street in downtown Oakland and Mumin will be on hand to discuss the documentary and the larger issues of female body politics and objectification.
The directors are still working on the final version and Mumin says more male participants are needed to round out the film.
When discussing the film Mumin says she needs more male voices to participate in the conversation and the hosts for the night, the Men of African Ancestry Network for Unlearning Patriarchy (MAAN-UP), have expressed the need for men of all backgrounds to take a stand for womens rights.
In October, when the rape of the young woman from Richmond High took place, Oakland local started a conversation with influential Bay Area male activists about mens roles in violence prevention. Similary to Mumin and MAAN UP, we found that there were not many men involved in struggles for gender equality.
But we did find some passionate and informed voices. Here are some of the responses we received from Richard dj fflood Wright, one of the founders of MAAN UP, Shawn Taylor author of the book Big Black Penis, which explores masculinity and feminism from a black mans perspective and violence prevention educator Paul Kivel.
Why arent there more male voices when it comes to men speaking up about domestic abuse and violence against women?
Shawn Taylor: Because the social space to do so is ridiculously limited. These young men are so afraid of being labeled “gay” that they will do anything to protect the nascent reputations of their sexual identities. Everything now has “no homo” tacked to the end of it. “That’s a nice car. No homo.” Get the f&^k out of here. Come on. Really? Men have yet to allow each other to express even a modicum of vulnerability. Now, when gender and race intersect, the space doesn’t even exist. If you are a white dude, you have vulnerable role models dotted all through the popular culture: Morrissey, John Lennon, Duckie from Pretty in Pink, John Cusack in Say Anything. Black dudes? 50 Cent, LL Cool J, Shaft? Not too much vulnerability happening. Latino? Che, Castro? Nope. Asian?
Your masculine identity is underrepresented. If it becomes socially allowable for men to talk about there feelings—without the fear of ridicule—most men will start to shore up their bravery and confront other men when they hurt women. Because as of now, most men are too afraid to go against the pseudo masculine grain and support the safety of women.
dj fflood: I think that most men think that issues like domestic abuse and rape are women’s issues, even though boys and men are by far the most common perpetrators of violence to girls and women. It should seem clear that this is a male responsibility thing, but there is somehow a cultural blindspot to that. Which leads into male privilege. We men don’t have to think about this stuff if we don’t want to. We aren’t being harassed like women are on the daily, we can just look the other way. The truth is, men can choose to just live our lives without giving this a second thought. I think that the red light that has been blinking, screaming for thousands of years (the US now averages 250,000 *reported* rapes a year [some experts quadruple that number], and 1.9 million cases of domestic violence a year) and i think it is finally registering to some men because our *children* are doing it. Its beginning to hit home that this is a problem that we all need to solve, if we are going to have any kind of future we want to raise our own children in.
Most systems of oppression allow the oppressor/benefiting class the privilege to not have to think about violence and disenfranchisement that the targeted class experiences. White people don’t have to think about people of color being abused by white cops, straight folks don’t have to spend energy worrying about gay bashings. But these systems can more effectively be changed if the people with privilege awake from a privileged slumber and DO something to make a difference.
I also agree with Shawn, boys and men are also scared. For instance, the harasser might turn on you instead. Ironically, women have to deal with this on the daily, but we can’t figure out how to step in even once in awhile? We continue to live in a bystander culture, whether boys are watching a gang rape go down, or all of us watch street harassment go down.
We have a lot of work to do. And at this point it is imperative for men to talk to other men and boys. If heterosexual men in particular say that they love women, then we should want to create real changes around these crucial issues.
Paul Kivel: There aren’t more men speaking up about domestic abuse and violence against women because boys aresocialized into accepting the inferiority and sexualization of women and are promised many rewards if they toe the male line and bond with other men at women’s expense. When men do step up their identity as men is attacked. They do not realize that there are communities of women and some men that would support them in living lives of integrity.
What actions can men take prevent violence against women?
Shawn Taylor: If you see it happening, try to stop it. If you can’t, find people who can. Make yourself an ally to women. If you’re a dad, raise strong daughters and emotionally intelligent sons. Stand by your wife, lover, sister. When a woman tells you that you are making her feel uncomfortable or that she is not interested in your ass, believe her. Stop looking at porn. I don’t care what anyone says, you see enough images of women being violently used as sexual objects, you’ll begin to adopt that same position. Call your boys out when they catcall or “push up” on women in a real foul way. Learn how to express yourself without your fists. But most of all, if you are an adult, teach those coming up behind you how to be loving.
dj fflood: An intervention was recently taught to me by a conscious sista who deals with harassment several times a day. She witnessed a woman being abused on the bus by a man, and she felt herself get angrier and angrier at the non-action of a whole bus. She stood up and asked for everyone who did not approve of what was going down, to simply stand up with her. Most people on the bus stood, and the violence stopped. When the abusing couple got off, people thanked her, saying they wanted to say something, but didn’t know what to do. This intervention allowed people to share responsibility.
Other than this intervention, men can prevent violence against women by raising and mentoring our boys to respect women, by not allowing sexist behavior in our midst, by not getting video games and music for our children that glorify violence to women, by intervening if you know your male friend is mistreating a woman, and by going to therapy if you yourself are a man that emotionally or physically abuses women.
Once upon a time, black bodies used to swing from knotted ropes while white families sat underneath and merrily had picnics. Thanks to a lot of work from white people of conscience, and hard working black folks, this is no longer a social norm. Let men of conscience also stand up, so that violence against women is also no longer a social norm.
Paul Kivel: There are many actions that men can take to prevent violence against women. Understand how sexism and male supremacy work. Notice your privilege. Talk with women and listen to their stories. Learn how to challenge men around you. Join efforts to change public policy. Challenge organizational and institutional practices that disadvantage women. Speak to your sons and the boys and younger men in your life about sexism and male violence. Etc.
