I remember when I published About IWD; I had a discussion with a friend of mine about the importance of International Women's Day. Mainly about how efforts have been so focused on women that men who can also deal with the same issues, or even worse, may feel left out. I asked him if he was aware that there was an International Men's Day as well? And he said that even though it existed, it didn't have as much weight or importance as the IWD. Since then I thought I should, in my small way, try to highlight this day and that's the purpose of today's post. I appreciate you joining me.
1. What is IMD?
International Men's Day (IMD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on November 19th to recognize and celebrate the cultural, political, and socioeconomic achievements of men. It is an occasion to celebrate boys' and men's lives, achievements, and contributions, in particular for their contributions to nation, union, society, community, family, marriage, and childcare. The broader and ultimate aim of the event is to promote basic awareness towards men's issues. [Wikipedia]
The objectives of celebrating an International Men's Day are set out in 'All The Six Pillars of International Men's Day'.
Valuing male role models.
Acknowledging the contribution of men and boys.
Improving male health.
Tackling discrimination and disadvantage.
Fostering positive gender relations.
Making the world a safer place for everyone.
2. A brief history of IMD:
International Men’s Day was founded in 1999 by Dr Jerome Teelucksingh, a history lecturer at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago.
But, calls for an International Men's Day (IMD) have been noted since at least the 1960s. Since then, there have been persistent international calls for the creation of an IMD, calls in the form of rhetorical questions about gender equality, for example, “Why do women have an international celebration and not men?” and more commonly in the form of statements like:
“Men’s contributions and concerns deserve a day of recognition in their own right,”
In more recent decades there have been a number of attempts at establishing an IMD in individual countries (e.g. Canada, France, USA, Colombia, Russia, Canada, China) with the hope that these gestures would be witnessed abroad by others who might follow suit and join in to celebrate their own IMD in synchrony with the founders. Whilst small celebrations of this nature were apparently observed by individuals in several countries, they suffered a lack of publicity necessary to reach interested parties abroad, and therefore, the initiatives were not continued. Today, IMD is supported by men, women and organisations in over 60 countries across the globe, but there's still a lot to do. Because unfortunately, the IMD is still not recognized by the UN #kataye.
3. Nope, every day is not IMD!
For decades, we have focused on the challenges women face and have tried to make their lives easier and more free. Good job there. But in the process, we missed something important. We have forgotten that we have in some way ignored the difficulties and efforts of men in our world. One often hears that the International Day of Men is every day except March 8. Some years ago, I used to think that way too. But let me tell you, this is a lie.
“International Men’s Day is an opportunity for people everywhere of goodwill to appreciate and celebrate the men in their lives and the contribution they make to society for the greater good of all.”
In the UK, for example, IMD is an occasion to focus on:
The high male suicide rate across the world,
The educational challenges that face both men and boys at all stages of life,
Men’s health, their shorter life expectancy and the fact that they suffer from workplace deaths at a much higher rate than women,
Male violence, and the fact that males are also victims of things such as rape, sexual exploitation and domestic violence,
The challenges faced by men as parents, especially as single parents or parents that do not have a good relationship with the Mother of their children. There is also focus on Fathers' rights,
Male survivors of violence or abuse, including domestic abuse,
The negative portrayal of men in the media and beyond. This includes male stereotypes that are used by well-known brands in advertising campaigns.
As women, men also do have parenting rights, do suffer domestic abuse and do have unmet mental health needs. The proposed objectives of international Men’s Day include a focus on men’s and boy’s health, improving gender relations, promoting gender equality, and highlighting positive male role models.
4. International Men's Day around the world:
Since 1999 the methods of commemorating International Men’s Day have included the giving and receiving of gifts, public seminars, forums, conferences, classroom activities at schools, Men’s Health events, Movember fundraisers, radio and television programs, Parliamentary speeches, Government Observances, Church observances, prayer meetings, peaceful gatherings and marches, awards ceremonies, special retail promotions, music concerts and art displays. Early pioneers of IMD remind everyone that the day is not intended to compete against International Women’s Day, but is to highlight men’s experiences. Each year, secondary themes are suggested, such as peace in 2002, men’s health in 2003, healing and forgiveness in 2007, or positive male role models in 2009. In 2010, the theme for International Men’s Day was “Our children, our future”.
This year, the theme for IMD 2022 is:
“Helping Men and Boys.”
Although International Men's and Women's Day are considered being 'gender focused' events, they are not ideological mirror images because they highlight issues that are considered unique to men or to women.
See:
To be honest, prior to the debate with my friend, I heard a bit about IMD, but I wasn't really interested in it. So it was an opportunity for me to learn more about that as well, and I'm very honoured to have shared with you what I've learned. Thanks Hamad, I hope we'll have more debates haha. And thank you all so much for reading. God bless you. Take care.
I also wish an happy International Day of Men to all boys and men around the world, and particularly to you, my lovely readers. Thank you for managing it all.
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