Are you Aware of the Fact that Today is Marked as the International Men’s Day?
In 2015, countries adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in its 17 Sustainable Development Goals to transform our world for the better. The 5th goal of the agenda revolves around gender equality, but, in the context of empowering women and girls. Feminism is not wrong. Again, feminism is not wrong. But, as I see it, to truly achieve gender equality – each gender – deserves equal importance.
Every 19th November, we come together to celebrate Internationals Men’s Day. However, their special day often remains shadowed compared to its counterpart, International Women’s Day. In fact, a significant portion of people are not even aware that such a day exists!
Whilst the idea of celebrating an International Men’s Day initially came about in the year 1991, it was officially kick-started by a certain Dr. Jerome Teelucksingh who had chosen today’s date in honor of his father’s birthday.
In celebrating the day, it is extremely important to have a clear understanding of the objectives behind marking this day. This is commonly referred to as “The Six Pillars of International Men's Day”, which is set out herein;
To promote positive male role models
To celebrate men’s positive contributions to society
To focus on men’s health and wellbeing
To highlight discrimination against men and boys
To improve gender relations and promote gender equality
To create a safer world for everyone
Ultimately, International Men’s Day, is an opportunity to raise awareness about issues faced by men which are often overlooked in addition to being an opportunity to appreciate and celebrate the men in our lives. It is high time we stop the negative gender stereotyping revolving around masculinity and promote positive aspects of the male identity. Men, just as equally as women, deserves a safe platform to have real and much-needed conversations in tackling the challenges they face which are crucially needed in letting men be whatever they want to be.
But, I note that a day is not enough to celebrate the life of not just men, but, any person! So, do not wait for dates to come when this should be an integral part of our daily lives.