by Markus Theunert
There can be no doubt: It is crucial
that men reflect on their (fundamental and everyday) accountability if they are
to engage in gender equality work. But we have to be aware at the same time
that accountability is something like felicity: It always makes sense to look
for it but it’s seldom that we experience it to its fulfilment. That is, as
long as we perceive and are perceived as men, we can’t act ungendered, we can’t
disclaim male privileges, we can’t have the same experiences of inequality as
women do. Therefore, our struggle for accountability will never be won: We just
can try to get as close as possible again and again. But it will remain an
approximation.
Humans are used to living with tasks
which never can’t be finished. So, what’s the problem in pointing this out?
There is a danger connected to the accountability approach: The danger that we
reflect so hard about acting accountably that we neglect to act or even don’t
dare to act at all. Since getting paralyzed can’t be the goal of men moving
toward gender equality, we have to look for smart ways to integrate and anchor
accountability in a broader framework, as Sebastián Molano demands in his
contribution to this blog series. This framework should provide orientation
for what we can do (and not only state what we should not do).
masculinities.ch is the umbrella association of progressive men’s and
father’s organizations in Switzerland. During the last decade we developed a
conceptual framework which is based on practical experiences with Michael Messner’s valuable
‘triangle of politics of masculinities’ (1997), differentiating privileges,
costs and inequalities of masculinities. While Messner’s triangle proved to be
highly helpful for developing positions and alliances, other practical
challenges remained unsolved.
We suggest a Triple Advocacy or
Triple Accountability model as a complementary concept for gathering and
framing progressive contributions of boys, men and fathers to gender equality
(e.g. Theunert 2014). The concept simply says that roles and contributions to
gender equality that can be provided by boys, men and fathers simultaneously
and equivalently enfold three different responsibilities and tasks:
-
Primarily, we are
supporters of women’s rights
movements and issues (allies);
-
Secondly, we
are spokesmen and interceders for the
vulnerabilitites and concerns of boys, men and fathers in pursuit of gender
equality;
-
Thirdly, we are
partners in a larger alliance
evolving for social justice and equality for all genders.
The center of the triangle is deemed
to be the area of progressive men’s contributions.
Our experience shows that the Triple
Advocacy or Triple Accountability framework can prove helpful to deal with challenges
and contradictions such as: How can men deal with their institutionalised
privileges without denying them or losing themselves in an altruistic, knightly
– and therefore still patriarchal – battle for ”the weak ones”?
Markus Theunert (1973) is a Swiss expert for masculinities and gender issues, president
of masculinities.ch, umbrella association of progressive men’s and father’s
organizations in Switzerland, and program manager of MenCare Switzerland. Mail theunert@maenner.ch
Literature:
Messner, Michael (1997). Politics of
Masculinities. Men in Movements. Thousand Oaks/London/New Delhi: Sage
Theunert, Markus (2014). Gleichstellungsorientierte
Männerpolitik(en) – Konzept und Spannungsfelder. Eine Positionierung.
GENDER, Heft 2/2014, S. 128–139
thanks for sharing
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