A well-loved campaign has been updated for a new generation of college students. What's 'Where Do You Stand?' all about, and why is it needed?
A couple of weeks ago I spotted a blog post somewhere that detailed how the writer was overjoyed to have "finally" found an anti-rape campaign that focused on engaging with men, rather than telling women what to do to avoid getting raped. That campaign was My Strength, first conceived by Men Can Stop Rape and known for its slogan "My strength is not for hurting". As some comments on the blog post pointed out, it's actually not a new initiative at all and has been around for more than a decade, doing great work among young men to promote a positive masculinity. I also remembered that I'd recently read that the campaign was being "retired"
Someone had asked if there were any genuinely new campaigns that don't target women in a victim-blamey way, and I thought of the newest material from Rape Crisis Scotland, which includes 10 'top tips to end rape' for men. But fans of initiatives such as My Strength will be pleased to know that while it may have come to an end, MCSR have chosen the start of a new year to launch Where Do You Stand? - with fresh new material aimed at young men and campus outreach.
We all know that sexual violence on college campuses is a hot topic, with numerous high profile court cases and incidents taking place in recent years. Thanks to this, there are scores of dedicated activists doing what they can to combat the problem - and it's great that My Strength has chosen to carry on working with men to change attitudes - not resorting to telling women that they shouldn't go out alone at night, or shouldn't wear revealing clothes.
MCSR's campaign information and resources explain that research has made them very aware that young men can hestitate to speak out against damaging cultural norms of "masculine" behaviour, and that they work to change this so that instead, they'll want to be "the kind of guy who takes a stand" instead of staying silent despite feeling bad about it. This is done through positive messages, education on what participants can do to effect change through bystander intervention, and reinforcing "health masculinity" - which doesn't involve violence or sexism.
Posters show a number of scenarios in which guys challenge sexual harassment, look out for their female friends and take a stand against abusive partners.
In a world where even the police don't want to run an anti-rape campaign focused on targeting potential perpetrators in case it makes them feel unfairly victimised, we need decent initiatives that work with men in a positive and productive way. My Strength has had huge success with setting up groups and mentoring in the last decade so I see no reason why Where Do You Stand? can't do the same and I hope it can really help to effect change on campuses across the US.
No doubt it will have its critics, probably some who will see it as "unfair all the men out there who would never assault a woman". But even if they wouldn't go that far, how many would be reluctant to speak out about problematic behaviour from their friends? A lot of people don't want to be the one who calls someone out and risks starting drama. But with the right tools to do so, maybe more will. Campus sexual assault and rape have become such a problem that it's vital these campaigns exist.
Complete campaign information and resources for Where Do You Stand? - more will be available soon
Men Can Stop Rape on Facebook and Twitter
Hannah Mudge writes about all things news and feminism-themed for BitchBuzz. You can also read her blog, We Mixed Our Drinks or follow her tweets as @boudledidge.