OTTAWA — Trumpeting the need for men and boys to enlist in the fight for gender equality, the federal government is awarding $562,000 to four organizations in a bid to lay the foundation for its promised national strategy.

Women and Gender Equality Minister Maryam Monsef is set to announce the funding Friday in Calgary, where she will also hail the release of a report prepared by her department to summarize months of cross-country consultations about how men and boys can “unlearn” what the government deems “outdated gender stereotypes” that harm everyone.

The report calls for programs that use role models to encourage men and boys to support gender equality, champion private companies that support these ideas, and create “safe spaces” in places like schools where men and boys can discuss healthy masculinity and ideas about what it means to be a man.

Groups receiving money include the Alberta Council of Women’s Shelters, which will get $212,000 to promote sports figures as gender equality role models. Catalyst Canada will receive $100,000 for programs designed to encourage men to “interrupt sexism in the workplace,” and a group called FOXY will get $125,000 for programs aimed at Indigenous youth in the Northwest Territories.

Finally, Next Gen Men, an organization designed to promote “positive masculinity,” will get $125,000 to build networks of “pro-feminist male leaders” to engage with feminist and women’s groups on gender equality.

“Gender equality benefits everyone. It creates healthier and happier relationships, less stress, stronger families, more productive and more profitable workplaces, and ultimately a stronger, more resilient Canada,” Monsef said in a written statement to the Star on Thursday.

“These projects are laying the foundation for the work we will continue to do together.”

Since it took power in 2015, the Liberal government has championed gender equality in Canada and abroad. In last year’s budget, Ottawa earmarked $1.8 million to develop a strategy to engage men and boys in its promotion of gender equality. That money was used to fund consultations with more than 200 groups and individuals — including private companies, universities, labour groups, community organizations and Indigenous peoples — in different parts of the country.

Framing the report as a guide for an upcoming national strategy, the government says it heard there is a need to raise awareness about elements of masculine behaviour that contribute to gender inequality and “start unlearning them.” Examples include the need to challenge ideas like “boys don’t cry” and “you throw like a girl.”

Jake Stika, executive director of Next Gen Men, said there is a need for men to examine social pressures and dominant ideas about masculinity alongside the broader public conversation sparked by the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements.

He echoed the government’s report, which says that while men and boys benefit in a male-dominated society, stereotypes about being a “real man” can create undue stress and make people refuse to seek help because it shows weakness.

“To me, those are gender equity issues,” said Stika. “What we’ve been really lacking for a long time is a conversation about men’s roles and identities in society, and how those are changing.”

Correction - August 16, 2019: This article was edited from a previous version that misspelled Jake Stika’s surname.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Read more about: