Blog by Allie Liu, SI Communications & Advocacy Assistant.
In the week preceding the 65th Session of the Commission on the Status on Women (CSW65), the NGO Committee CSW, New York (NGO CSW/NY) held the final webinar in its preparation series for Youth Leaders and Young Professionals.
The event took place on 11 March via Zoom, and saw over 150 participants joining from all corners of the world. Aimed at young leaders already working on achieving gender equality in their communities, discussions were lively and energetic. The conversation centred around the engagement of men and boys, and their role in achieving gender equality.
Moderator of the online meeting, José Alberto Chanona, a HeForShe advocate, kicked off the webinar with an icebreaker activity as he asked speakers and participants to share who inspires them. Ranging from influential figures like Nelson Mandela and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, to mothers and grandmothers, everybody spoke passionately about a changemaker who motivates them.
Moderator of the session, José Alberto Chanona (pictured top), outlines the objectives of the webinar.
The webinar then moved to a roundtable discussion with four guest speakers: Selin Özünaldım, Josué Argüelles, Dario Korolija, Carl Murrell. The array of speakers was an encouraging sight to see in a discussion around gender equality, as they represented different genders, ages, and backgrounds. This was mirrored by an incredible range of participants in attendance, meaning that the conversation was both intergenerational and international.
Özünaldım, the youngest representative for HeForShe in Turkey, gave an impassioned rally cry stating that gender equality “is not just a women’s issue” but rather, a human rights issue, reminding us that men should not be left on the sidelines in this conversation. The other three male speakers echoed this sentiment, by exploring the meaning of true allyship. Argüelles, of A Call to Men, framed his definition through an analogy:
“Allyship is not a destination, we will never arrive there. It is a constant practice of how we show up.”
Korolija, a UNICEF Young Reporter, added that unlearning gendered language that has become commonplace, such as “boys will be boys”, is key to removing barriers to gender equality. Murrell, United Nations Representative for the Baha’is of the United States, astutely observed that we are learning about women’s empowerment in spaces such as this webinar, and the next (more difficult) step is to put it into practice – in our homes, in our schools, in our communities.
Argüelles explained the importance of engaging men and boys through community organising, in order to dismantle the “performance” of masculinity and to work towards what he calls, healthy manhood. He asked that men “lean into the discomfort of making mistakes” and to follow the leadership of women. Özünaldım responded by reiterating the importance of education (and re-education) in combatting harmful stereotypes, which wrapped up the roundtable discussion portion of the webinar.
Participants were then put into breakout rooms, giving them the opportunity to interact with the speakers in smaller groups. Prompted by probing questions posed by the moderator, participants offered their thoughts on whether men can – and should – identify as feminists, which led to a discussion on the terminology and use of the word, ‘feminist’. The group concluded that we should remember Argüelles’ point about sitting with discomfort and to go through the deep unlearning process that Korolija talked of. People also shared their different motivations behind why they decided to be a proponent of gender equality – all united by the same willingness to achieve a better future.
Over 150 participants from across the world joined the discussion on male allyship.
After returning to the main room, each group took it in turns to debrief and outline what they discussed in their breakout rooms. There was a sense of hopefulness and vigour amongst the speakers and participants that only seemed to grow over the two hour webinar. This impactful webinar has shown how crucial it is to include men in the equation and in the solution.
Final thoughts
Men are active, and they want to be included in the discussion. Men and boys are understanding that gender equality is beneficial to them also, and that playing their part is necessary for a sustainable and just society. Their commitment to the advancement of women’s rights is testament to how far the conversation on gender equality has come, building on the progress made by previous generations – but also highlights how far we still have to go. As CSW returns for its 65th Session at the United Nations, we are reminded that everyone has a part to play in #GenerationEquality. We have to continue working together to make a gender equal world, a living reality for all.
To find out more about CSW65 and how to get involved, please click HERE.
To read the SI Position Paper on the Role of Men and Boys, click HERE.