Gender violence expert Jackson Katz says fear of what other men will think is why some fail to speak up against sexism or sexual abuse against women. To the contrary, it should be considered "an act of strength" and leadership to intervene, Katz says. On today's WestSouthwest, Katz talks about the effectiveness of what he calls the "bystander approach" in a longer version of his interview with WMUK's Earlene McMichaelthat aired last week.
"The goal of this approach is to get guys who are not abusive towards women and girls -- or other men and boys -- to not just walk away or turn our head, but to actually challenge and interrupt our friends, teammates and co-workers who are making sexist comments or sexist jokes," Katz says.
Katz says this even extends to confronting individuals who are physically or sexually abusive as long as it is done "in a safe way."
That's because, the overarching idea, he explains, " is to get more men to start making it clear to other men and young men that treating women with disrespect is not acceptable not just because you're going to get in trouble with the authorities -- like the coach is going to punish you or the police is going to arrest you or something -- but because we in your peer culture don't accept that kind of behavior and you'll lose status and you'll lose friends and you'll lose respect among your peers if you act in those ways."
Katz spoke last Thursday at Western Michigan University as part of its "Raise Your Voice" anti-violence series (hear last week's story). He is the author of "The Macho Paradox: Why Some Men Hurt Women and How All Men Can Help." His TED Talk, "Violence Against Women is a Man's Issue," has been viewed more than 2.5 million times.
