The celebration of International Men’s Day is saving men’s lives by the tens of thousands every year that it is celebrated. Read about some of the awesome events that took place this year.

International Men’s Day is exploding around the world. So firstly, thank you for your support for Internationals Men’s Day and Dads4Kids. Without your help, we could not have put International Men’s Day (IMD) on the global stage. A lot has happened since we registered the International Men’s Day website back on the 13th of June, 2008.

The theme of International Men’s Day this year was Better relations between men and women. This theme is empowering women (IMD Sisters) to celebrate International Men’s Day like never before.

Videos are exploding all over the internet. Check out this one from India called Men the Other Side of the Story from a blog site called ‘Man are Human’. What a quaint idea!

Let’s look at what has happened in the UK, Belize in the Caribbean, Israel and finally Australia. This is a micro-snapshot of International Men’s Day events from all over the world.

What’s Happening in the United Kingdom

Mark Brooks in the UK coordinates the most successful International Men’s Day celebrations in the world on a per-capita basis. This article in a London paper gives you a great picture of what has happened in the UK:  International Men’s Day: Starting the conversation on Men’s Health. It says:

International Men’s Day hopes to break stigmas and start open conversations about men’s health. Founded in 1999 by Dr Jerome Teelucksingh, International Men’s Day (IMD) is now celebrated in over 60 countries worldwide on the 19th of November.

Each year the theme of the day changes, but the aim remains consistent: making positive differences to the wellbeing and lives of men and boys and starting open conversations about men and boys’ health.

Many charities around the UK actively support IMD, such as Prostate Cancer UK and The Mankind Initiative. Below are some of the stories from survivors and the work these charities do.

The Mankind Initiative, started in 2001, is the principal, expert and specialist charity in the UK focused on helping male victims of domestic abuse.

As per government statistics of March 2020, we can see:

• Men account for 75% of suicides in the UK
• One in every six men will be victims in their lifetime
• One in three victims of domestic abuse are men

There are stories of men’s experiences with domestic abuse on Mankind Initiative’s website. Click here to read Ed’s full story and more testimonies from other survivors.

What’s Happening in Belize

Every year on the 19th of November, the Men and Boys Coalition runs the National Men and Boys awards to commemorate those who have committed their time and effort to support the day.

An article in Breaking Belize News (Belize is a small country in Central America) called First event to highlight International Men’s Day being held in Belize gets right to the point:

The National Parenting Taskforce (NPTF) is hosting the first IMD event, titled “Man 2 Man Talk,” which is being held at the Best Western Plaza on International Men’s Day from 9 am to 3 pm.

Man 2 Man Talk will feature discussions surrounding the laws surrounding marriage, the variations… and how the laws govern them, and ultimately how men can better interact with and engage the legal system to foster the best interest of the child and the family.

What’s Happening in Israel

The Jerusalem Post, in an article called Israel’s Agam Museum Marks International Men’s Day, says:

In this country there are roughly 15,000 male inmates and about 120 female inmates,” Tamir Ashman, 51, shared. “Each year there are 500 suicide-related deaths, the majority of which (400) are men. Why should this be the case? 

We have no scientific evidence testosterone causes violence, what causes rage outbursts is adrenaline, which flows in the blood of both males and females.”

For Ashman, who teaches men who had been abusive and ended up in prison to verbalize their pain, the answer must include a deeper understanding of how we teach children to be men…

Surprisingly, he points to Jesus as one Jewish teacher with a radical message of transforming the world with compassion.

“Jesus lives in a world of constant fighting and tooth for a tooth and eye for an eye,” he said, “he was not a pacifist, just humble, he pointed to how taking a leap of faith and trusting those who have harmed you in the past is the only way to end the cycle of pain.”

Poet Robert Bly released Iron John: A Book About Men in 1990, referring to a 19th century German folk tale about a powerful wild man who teaches a prince how to live.

“We need to open the question of what is strength,” Ashman told the Post. International Men’s Day at Agam Museum was held on Thursday (the 18th of November) at 8 pm under the theme of healing between the sexes. The program includes a guided tour focusing on love and relationships. 

What’s Happening in the Northern Territory

Interestingly, I had an interview the day before International Men’s Day with a commercial radio station in Darwin. Thankfully, I remembered there was a great IMD event already happening in the NT called International Men’s Day Forum Darwin 2021.

The radio interviewer was very appreciative of the recommendation. The line-up of Indigenous and non-Indigenous speakers was spectacular. 

The web info paints a picture well. Following on from last year’s inaugural forum, this year’s event brought together 250 Northern Territory men to discuss a range of topics relating to employment, family violence, men’s health, suicide prevention and the state of the Territory. 

Speakers included:

• Original drummer of the Bee Gees band and child film actor, Colin Petersen
• NT Chief Health Officer, Dr Hugh Heggie
• NT Football legend Mark Motlop
• Heston Russell – Lobbying for the Royal Commission into Veteran Suicide
• Larrakia Elder and NAIDOC Person of the Year 2021, Richard Fejo, was the MC
• Young Australian of the Year Stuart McGrath – the first-ever Yolgnu nurse
• Founder of Run with Dad – Katie Woolf OAM

Lovework

Share these stories with your children. Multiply the above stories by thousands to get the complete picture.

The celebration of International Men’s Day is saving men’s lives by the tens of thousands every year that it is celebrated. Help us save more lives and donate today.

There are some brave men and women who are making a difference for men, boys and their families all over the world. You are one of them.

Yours for Men & Boys 

Warwick Marsh

Image by Joel Bengs at Unsplash.