International Men’s Day is an annual celebration that takes place on November 19 each year.
International Men’s Day is celebrated every year on November 19 to commemorate the positive contribution of men to society. Furthermore, the idea of having an annual day dedicated to men is to highlight the development of humanitarian, societal and cultural values among them.
International Men’s Day also highlights health issues among men and boys, encouraging a healthy lifestyle.
The official International Men’s Day website, sponsored by the Australia-based Dads4Kids Fatherhood Foundation, lists “six pillars of Men’s Day” as its core founding principles.
These include:
- promote positive male role models,
- focus on men’s health,
- promote gender equality and improve gender relations,
- celebrate the positive contributions of men to society,
- highlighting discrimination against men, and
- create a safe world.
Here’s everything you need to know about International Men’s Day 2021
The theme of International Men’s Day 2021
Keeping in mind one of the six pillars of Men’s Day – the promotion of gender equality and gender relations – the official theme of International Men’s Day for 2021 is “From better relations between men and women.
The IMD website notes that the month of November focuses on men’s well-being. Additionally, the month also holds special significance for raising awareness about men’s health issues as it marks the annual event known as ‘Movember’. Its fundraisers form a global community that focuses on mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer and testicular cancer, and men grow mustaches throughout the month to help raise awareness of men’s health. Many other fundraisers, lectures and art exhibitions are held on International Men’s Day.
Many people around the world also celebrate International Men’s Day by spending time with the men in their family – such as fathers, brothers and sons – who have been positive role models and thanking them for their support. It is important to encourage men to be aware of health issues and not behave recklessly.
When was International Men’s Day conceived?
American professor Thomas Oaster of the Missouri Center for Men’s Studies at the University of Missouri in Kansas City initiated and promoted International Men’s Day as an annual event on February 7, 1992. However, he discontinued the event shortly after due to lack of popularity.
Eventually, in 1999, Dr. Jerome Teelucksingh, a professor of history at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago, revived the celebration which continues to this day. He chose November 19 in honor of his father born on that date and to focus on mental health. The idea quickly gained global acceptance and many countries adopted it over time, including Australia in 2003 and India in 2007.
Interestingly, Malta continued to observe this day in February instead of November for almost a decade. It was only in 2009 that the Maltese AMR Committee decided to align its celebration with the rest of the world and accepted November 19 as the date for the annual event.
Is this to compete with International Women’s Day?
No, International Men’s Day is celebrated to give equal importance to men’s health issues and does not compete with International Women’s Day.
Discussions for a dedicated men’s day have been ongoing since the 1960s and may have sparked questions about why such a day did not exist when International Women’s Day has been celebrated since 1909 However, the focus has shifted to discussions of the need to celebrate men’s positive contributions to society and talk about their well-being.
“The concept and themes of International Men’s Day are designed to give hope to the depressed, faith to the lonely, comfort to the broken-hearted, transcend barriers, eliminate stereotypes and create a kinder humanity” , Dr Teelucksingh reportedly said. in the founder’s statement on the International Men’s Day website.
Men’s health is therefore an essential element of the event. The organization notes that men face critical health issues such as higher rates of heart disease, cancer and suicide.
According to IMD, men can also be victims of domestic violence. He cites research carried out by the One in Three Campaignwhich indicates that one in three victims of domestic violence in Australia is a man.
The IMD also notes the contribution of Indian men’s advocate Uma Challa, who helped the event gain prominence in India and highlighted the abuse faced by men in the country.
Research published by the Indian Journal of Community Medicine in 2019 revealed that 51.5% of men have experienced violence from their spouse/intimate partner at least once in their lives. The research was conducted on 1,000 married men aged 21 to 49 in a rural area of Haryana by Jagbir Singh Malik and Anuradha Nadda.
It should be noted that International Men’s Day is not recognized by the United Nations, which is part of the reason why it is not as popular as International Women’s Day.
(Main and Featured Images: Matheus Ferrero/@matheusferrero/Unsplash)
