Every year, on November 25th, over 60 countries observe White Ribbon Day, a campaign dedicated to ending violence against women and girls. It’s also about something equally crucial: teaching young men what compassionate masculinity actually looks like.
The White Ribbon Campaign points out a rather uncomfortable truth. For too long, men have been cast solely as perpetrators of violence, while the underlying reasons — and how to prevent them — have largely been ignored. It's like only treating the symptoms while the root cause continues to fester.
Now, the campaign is making a concerted effort to connect what we know about men and masculinities with actual prevention work. The goal is to expand the positive roles men can play, recruiting new allies and fresh approaches to tackle an old, ugly problem.
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Take the Milton Keynes art exhibit in London last fall. Artist and photojournalist Claudia Janke created striking portraits of 16 men, each nominated by women in their own communities for standing up against violence. It was a visual celebration of allyship, and frankly, it's about time.
One of those men was Sal Naseem, a former regional director for the Independent Office of Police Conduct. He spent his career investigating police violence against women and, according to the BBC, believes England and Wales are facing a “national emergency.” His reasoning? A full one-fifth of all recorded crime involves men's violence against women and girls. Let that sink in.
Naseem highlighted how often women's voices are dismissed in male-dominated spaces when they speak out against sexism and misogyny. He argues that men like him must keep speaking up until systemic change isn't just a hopeful whisper, but a roaring reality. Because, as he puts it, when a man intervenes, it makes a lasting impact.
For Janke, the project was a much-needed dose of hope. She knows the statistics all too well — seven out of ten women experience harassment in public places, and she’s one of them. She wanted to find the men who defy that norm, who step in rather than look away. And in the 16 men she photographed, she found exactly that: amazing role models actively pushing back against the status quo.
