Walk a Mile in Her Shoes Toronto 2010
 |
| Executive Director of the White Ribbon Campaign, Todd Minerson (far left) in the signature red heels for the Walk a Mile in Her Shoes Fundriaser. |
Speaking of shoes and the many roads that we travel in them, I want to highlight a very important issue here on Sole Sisters Collective; the issue of violence against women. There are many people out there who are doing a tremendous amount of work to ensure that women and girls can live free of violence, and I am pleased to know many individuals who strive to make a difference in our communities everyday.
I had the great opportunity to interview Mr. Todd Minerson, Executive Director of the
White Ribbon Campaign in Toronto, Canada about the Walk a Mile in her Shoes fundraiser that will be taking place on Thursday September 30th, 2010.
There are White Ribbon Campaigns in over 60 countries, including Pakistan, Brazil, China, Russia, South Africa and Russia (to name a few). Get involved, and get your husbands/partners involved to help eradicate violence against women.
You can also read my first interview with the WRC here.
You can also read my first interview with the WRC here.
INTERVIEW WITH THE WHITE RIBBON CAMPAIGN 2010
Mr. Minerson , firstly I want to thank you so much for agreeing to an interview with the Sole Sisters Collective.
What inspired or inspires the WRC to go this route in activism, and what are your goals for the 2nd annual Walk a Mile in her Shoes?
I want to say you have some very thoughtful and articulate questions there, far more interesting and pertinent than most “mainstream” interviews I do. Kudos for that.
Walk A Mile in Her Shoes (WAMIHS) is the brainchild of a man called Frank Baird in the US. His vision was an event that would engage men in the effort to work to end violence against women, and it has taken off across North America. We are taking it up a notch here in Toronto with one of, if not the biggest WAMIHS event in the world.
We were committed to an event that not only raised money, but awareness on the issue of men’s violence against women, and hopefully engaged men to step up and actually do something about it. Our goal this year is to raise $100,000 for our work at the White Ribbon Campaign, and to also raise as much awareness about the issue as we possibly can.
How do men express their feelings about the issue of men's violence against women? There must be some diversity in their thinking from cultural upbringing and their own experiences for example.
Wow, this is a great question. There certainly is a great diversity of experiences, not only via culture, faith, geography, economics; but also through men’s own experiences of violence, and men’s positive exposure to gender equitable upbringings. The biggest challenge however, is in my mind a universal one, and is hinted at in the way you framed your question.
Men generally do not express their feelings about men’s violence against women, and breaking that silence is our biggest challenge. Men’s violence against women is rooted in power and patriarchy, systems which thrive by being invisible, unchallenged, and uncontested. Men’s silence on these kinds of issue is a huge part of that. Once we break the silences, then we can start recognizing, and addressing the diversity of men’s feelings and opinions, moving them towards understanding the roles and responsibilities we all have in ending violence against women.
If it is important to provide clarity that " the experience of walking one mile in women’s shoes does not sum up or give a full understanding of women's lives and experiences " , how do you bridge the gap between desire for change and ensuring an appreciation for women's lived experiences?
We know that most men will never use or condone the use of violence against women, but as we also know, most men are silent on the issue. Breaking the silence requires creative “entry points” in the conversation for a lot of men. If we are using an event like WAMIHS it is our responsibility to provide the bigger picture context for men; i.e.; this experience cannot give a full understanding of women’s lives, nor is it an equitable replacement for the amount of violence women experience.
When I speak about the White Ribbon Campaign, some people have no idea what you do. Is there anything you would like to add or inform my readers about?
The White Ribbon Campaign started here in Toronto, in 1991 following the December 6th Montreal Massacre. Three guys determined there had to be a role and responsibility for men to play in working to end violence against women. They came up with the pledge we still use today, “to never commit, condone, or remain silent about violence against women”.
If you would like to join the Walk A Mile In Her Shoes® Toronto event click on the link below to register today!
https://secure.e2rm.com/registrant/StartUp.aspx?EID=45175&Lang=en-CA
Thank you very much for your time Mr. Minerson and good luck in your fundraising efforts.
If it is important to provide clarity that " the experience of walking one mile in women’s shoes does not sum up or give a full understanding of women's lives and experiences " , how do you bridge the gap between desire for change and ensuring an appreciation for women's lived experiences? We know that most men will never use or condone the use of violence against women, but as we also know, most men are silent on the issue. Breaking the silence requires creative “entry points” in the conversation for a lot of men. If we are using an event like WAMIHS it is our responsibility to provide the bigger picture context for men; i.e.; this experience cannot give a full understanding of women’s lives, nor is it an equitable replacement for the amount of violence women experience.
However, it is a powerful experience that can result in transformative thinking in me. For example, “ok, if this is how different women’s experience is here, maybe I should think a bit more closely about women’s experiences around violence.’ It is incumbent upon us to ensure this is the beginning of that conversation and not the end.
I understand that some feminist groups are supportive of the event, has there been any resistance from other feminist groups? What are their concerns and how have you reconciled this?
When we considered doing this event, we had some concerns ourselves. Particularly around the perception of the continued marginalization of women’s issues, but also the marginalization of gay, lesbian, transgendered issues. Our intent is not to address one equity issue at the expense of others. So we consulted women’s groups and LGBT groups, and said, here are some of the possible concerns, here are the reasons why we think this will be effective.
It seems that it is important that men walk the walk first to get an idea of the reality of being a woman. How do you all regroup after the event to make sense of what has taken place?
When we considered doing this event, we had some concerns ourselves. Particularly around the perception of the continued marginalization of women’s issues, but also the marginalization of gay, lesbian, transgendered issues. Our intent is not to address one equity issue at the expense of others. So we consulted women’s groups and LGBT groups, and said, here are some of the possible concerns, here are the reasons why we think this will be effective.
We listened and learned, and ultimately realized there was a greater support for our attempts to get men engaged on these issues. We also came to realize that there were things we could control, for example in all of our creative and marketing, we insisted we stay away of anything “campy” or drag. We are very proud to have so many women’s and LGBT groups on board with our work.
It seems that it is important that men walk the walk first to get an idea of the reality of being a woman. How do you all regroup after the event to make sense of what has taken place?
In some ways it sends a signal to those women that this is a guy who might listen to how different her experiences are, this is a guy who might learn something, this is a guy I might trust to share these things. It is really difficult for us to foster these kinds of conversations with everyone who participated, but our feedback around experiences like this was really encouraging.
It is reiterated that Gender based violence is not just a women's issue which I think is an obvious fact. How does walking in high heels shoes really get to the heart of gender based violence?
As mentioned, this is all a process for men. The invisibility of men’s power and privilege (for men at least) is the main factor in the reality that most men have never critically examined that privilege. Wearing women’s shoes is an experience that takes men momentarily out of that place of privilege, and into the space of women. It can be an “a-ha” moment were some men for the first time critically reflect that if this is different, other things are different, and since it is quite clear our mission is to end men’s violence against women, we try to draw the parallels there throughout the event.
As mentioned, this is all a process for men. The invisibility of men’s power and privilege (for men at least) is the main factor in the reality that most men have never critically examined that privilege. Wearing women’s shoes is an experience that takes men momentarily out of that place of privilege, and into the space of women. It can be an “a-ha” moment were some men for the first time critically reflect that if this is different, other things are different, and since it is quite clear our mission is to end men’s violence against women, we try to draw the parallels there throughout the event.
It also speaks to creating empathy, which can be a powerful social change tool. In our work another challenge is that many men simply do not think there is a problem around men’s violence against women, after participating in this event, they can’t make that claim any longer.
500 people took the challenge in last year's Walk a Mile in her Shoes. How many people are you expecting this year and what was the feedback from the 2009 event.
We are hoping to double the participants this year. The feedback from 2009 was amazing, we really felt we accomplished our fundraising goal, our awareness goal, and we had a great number of folks ask for other ways to get involved in the work as a result.
We are hoping to double the participants this year. The feedback from 2009 was amazing, we really felt we accomplished our fundraising goal, our awareness goal, and we had a great number of folks ask for other ways to get involved in the work as a result.
It is important to the WRC that the large public display of men walking to end men's violence against women help shift the idea that men do not care about VAW, how do you reach out to men who do not participate in the event (ie. onlookers)?
This visual aspect of the event is huge. First, it has media appeal, so we are able to get it out there.
The weather in Toronto has been unpredictable lately. What are the WRC's plans if it rains on Thursday?
We are walking rain or shine!
This visual aspect of the event is huge. First, it has media appeal, so we are able to get it out there.
Second, we love the fact that it challenges the prevailing social norms, that men don’t care, that men won’t take action to end violence against women. This is especially powerful when men like police officers, firemen, EMS, politicians, athletes, celebrities walk.
Third, we have also learned that men are mobilized to make change when they see themselves reflected in that effort, when they look at this walk and see everyday guys stepping up they can ask, “why am I not out there?”
The weather in Toronto has been unpredictable lately. What are the WRC's plans if it rains on Thursday?
We are walking rain or shine!
When I speak about the White Ribbon Campaign, some people have no idea what you do. Is there anything you would like to add or inform my readers about?
The White Ribbon Campaign started here in Toronto, in 1991 following the December 6th Montreal Massacre. Three guys determined there had to be a role and responsibility for men to play in working to end violence against women. They came up with the pledge we still use today, “to never commit, condone, or remain silent about violence against women”.
What started here in Toronto is now the world’s largest effort of men and boys working to end violence against women, with activities in over 60 countries around the world. Our work is based on the fact that to end men’s violence against women, we must engage men in the work of gender equality, and we must work to transform some of the harmful and violent aspects of masculinities.
If you would like to join the Walk A Mile In Her Shoes® Toronto event click on the link below to register today!
https://secure.e2rm.com/registrant/StartUp.aspx?EID=45175&Lang=en-CA
Thank you very much for your time Mr. Minerson and good luck in your fundraising efforts.
EVENT INFORMATION
DATE: Thursday September 30, 2010
PLACE: Nathan Phillips Square, Toronto
TIME: 12pm - 2pm
walkamiletoronto.org
whiteribbon.ca
TIME: 12pm - 2pm
walkamiletoronto.org
whiteribbon.ca
~ 0 Beautiful footprints: ~
Post a Comment