Violence against women is men's problem, speaker says

Author and filmmaker Jackson Katz calls on men to step up and end the country's culture of violence.
Author and filmmaker Jackson Katz calls on men to step up and end the country's culture of violence.

According to gendered violence expert Jackson Katz, violence against women is a problem men should tackle.

"We need a paradigm shift in our thinking," Katz said. "Gendered violence is thought of as a primarily women's issue that some good men help with. I reject that paradigm."

Katz has created several books and films that address issues of gendered violence - sexual assault, domestic violence, etc. - and its relationship to race and masculinity. He co-founded the Mentors in Violence Prevention program, which today is used in the U.S. military and many professional sports teams.

At his talk at William Woods University on Wednesday, Katz said that women have made great advances that have benefited both men and women with regards to gendered violence.

"Men have been sexually assaulting women for thousands of years, but there weren't any rape crisis centers until the '70s," he said. "Those centers are the result of women's work."

And most rape prevention has, historically, focused on teaching women how to avoid dangerous situations: never put your drink down at a party, never walk home alone at night.

In Katz's opinion, it's time for men to step up. He said that when he tells men that, however, they tend to take offense, for one of two reasons.

"One misconception is they think (activism and changes to legislation) have benefited women and girls but not men and boys," Katz said. "Actually, men's lives have been improved profoundly because of women's work."

For example, he said, the work to prevent domestic violence has helped protect young boys growing up in potentially dangerous homes. Men who were traumatized as children are much more likely to grow up into abusers themselves, Katz said, so fighting domestic violence helps save kids from trauma and prevents the violent cycle from continuing.

"Women in the battered women's movement are sometimes called man-bashers, but they're advocating for those traumatized boys," Katz said.

Society has a view that masculinity means violence, Katz said. In his view, that's demonstrated in the media, where male protagonists shun expressing feelings as effeminate and solve all their problems with their fists. But men aren't only the perpetrators of violence in today's America, Katz said - they're also the main victims.

"Critiquing the society's narrative of masculinity is in all of our interests," Katz said.

The other objection: not all men are abusers.

"The problem with going into a roomful of men with your finger pointed is that men will push back," Katz said. "They'll say, 'I'm not a rapist, why do I have to sit through this?'"

To which Katz said, of course. Not all men are abusers, but all men can help shape the culture which makes some men more likely to abuse women.

"Men can be heard saying things to men that women can't be heard saying," Katz said. "One of the ways of using this privilege is in service of justice."

Katz suggests that when a guy's friends make sexist jokes, he can call that out.

"Isn't your silence a form of complicity?" Katz said. "Bystander intervention isn't just interrupting incidents, it's calling out language and influencing cultures."

Katz suggests that if someone's uncomfortable directly intervening in a situation, they should find an authority figure who can help. For example, apparent sexual harassment at work can be reported to Human Resources.

Katz said that while it might be scary speaking up for the first time, it gets easier with practice.

"As Martin Luther King Jr. said, 'In the end, what will hurt the most is not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends,'" Katz said.