On November 19, International Men’s Day celebrates worldwide the positive value men bring to the world, their families and communities. The campaign aims to highlight positive role models and raise awareness of men’s well-being. The month of November is important for the masculine soul because it gathers several events that are important to men. Movember is the month we focus on raising money for men’s health. International Men’s Day is celebrated around the world in at least 60 countries!
Every year, International Men’s Day in the UK is marked by more and more women, men and organisations across the country. Across November there are Parliamentary debates, policy launches, employer days, community events, health days, business events, staff support days, debates, student events, political events, lectures, research launches, gigs, charity promotion days, book launches, mental health discussions, film showings, conferences, competitions, comedy nights, get-togethers, award announcements and charity fundraisers – the most anywhere in the world.
There were 200 events in 2018, 2019 and 2020 – (plus 195,000 tweets in 2020, the biggest trend in the UK for 14 hours and the “hottest trend of the day”). Let’s make 2021 even bigger!
The three core themes for International Men’s Day in the UK are:
- Making a positive difference to the wellbeing and lives of men and boys
- Raising awareness and/or funds for charities supporting men and boys’ wellbeing
- Promoting a positive conversation about men, manhood and masculinity
These core themes help to address some of the issues that affect men and boys such as:
- The high male suicide rate
- The challenges faced by boys and men at all stages of education and work including attainment, re-training, redundancy and unemployment
- Men’s health (including male cancers), shorter life expectancy and workplace deaths – plus the health impact of Covid-19
- The challenges faced by the most marginalised men and boys in society (for instance, homeless men, boys in care, school exclusions and the high rate of male deaths in custody)
- Male victims of violence, including sexual violence
- The challenges faced by men as parents, particularly new fathers and separated fathers
- Male victims and survivors of sexual abuse, rape, sexual exploitation, domestic abuse, forced marriage, honour-based crime, stalking and slavery
- The negative portrayal of men, boys and fathers
Comprised by Westfield Health, below are some posters for employers to help raise awareness of men’s health at work:
Men’s Health for Employers.pdf
Know your Numbers – Employee Poster.pdf
Men’s Health Conversations Poster.pdf
For more information and resources, please click here.
