Mothers of Sons Group Kicks Off Global #MenToo Campaign Addressing Plight of Male Victims of Domestic Violence

A global alliance of organizations from six countries has launched a campaign designed to draw attention to the plight of male victims of domestic violence. The six countries are Australia, India, Ireland, United Kingdom, United States, and Uruguay.

The #MenToo campaign is inspired by the recent trial of Johnny Depp, which exposed Amber Heard’s taunt: “Tell the world, Johnny, tell them, ‘I, a man, I’m a victim, too, of domestic violence’ — and see how many people believe or side with you.” (1)

Following the announcement of the verdict on June 1 in favor of Depp, the #MenToo hashtag began to trend on Twitter (2). For example, Oluwatomisin Amokeoja tweeted, “Like women, #MenToo go through a lot. Everybody, regardless of gender, suffers abuse. But we live in a world where men are supposed to be supermen without emotions. It all reeks of double standards.” (3)

See also: Why We Need to Reject the Term Gender-Based Violence

‘Patriarchy’ myth about domestic violence

Many studies have concluded that women are approximately as likely as men to engage in domestic violence. For example, a summary of 343 investigations by Dr. Martin Feibert revealed that “women are as physically aggressive as men (or more) in their relationships with their spouses or opposite-sex partners.” (4)

See also: City of Kirkland invites male survivor of domestic violence to receive DV Awareness Month proclamation [Video]

The exclusion of male victims from domestic violence programs stems from an ideological belief that domestic violence is a tactic utilized by men to uphold patriarchal “power and control.” This notion is contradicted by the fact that women in same-sex relationships engage in higher rates of partner abuse than heterosexual men or women (5).

The #MenToo campaign is working to assure that:

1. Male victims are fully recognized by domestic violence legislation.
2. Domestic violence education and training programs are factually accurate regarding the extent of male victimization.
3. Domestic violence providers provide necessary outreach and services for male victims.

Persons are urged to use the #MenToo hashtag for social media messages. More information on the global #MenToo campaign is available online (6).

Links:

1. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/amber-heard-johnny-depp-abuse-b2080369.html
2. https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2022/06/02/mentoo-trends-on-twitter-following-depp-v-heard-verdict/  
3. https://twitter.com/TomisinAmokeoja/status/1532120234500534274?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1532120234500534274%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.breitbart.com%2Fentertainment%2F2022%2F06%2F02%2Fmentoo-trends-on-twitter-following-depp-v-heard-verdict%2F
4. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261543769_References_Examining_Assaults_by_Women_on_Their_Spouses_or_Male_Partners_An_Updated_Annotated_Bibliography
5. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/cdc_nisvs_victimization_final-a.pdf
6. http://endtodv.org/coalitions/davia/mentoo/

Press release published here: http://endtodv.org/pr/global-mentoo-campaign-addresses-plight-of-male-victims-of-domestic-violence/