UNESCO debunks feminist conundrums of working on masculinities

UNESCO Assistant Director-General for the Social and Human Sciences Gabriela Ramos kicked off the event by underscoring that effective legal and policy solutions are there to advance gender equality. However, progress will be slow if, in tandem with legislating equality, we do not address the social, institutional and cultural norms that hold women back. She explained that UNESCO is working with men and boys through its “Transforming MENtalities programme” to deconstruct gender stereotypes and biases and build more inclusive societies. 

Experts in the panel discussed how despite the significant progress in women’s rights during the last few decades, regressions in gender equality and anti-feminist backlash have increased globally in recent years. Dr Mariagrazia Squicciarini, Chief of Executive Office, and Director a.i. for Social Policies at UNESCO’s Social and Human Sciences Sector argued for the need to dispel misconceptions from our own unconscious biases to end the discrimination and abuse women face in their daily lives. She highlighted how the launch of ‘Women 4 Ethical AI’ Platform – a UNESCO platform of global leaders to fight for gender equality in frontier technologies – comes in at the right time to counteract this ongoing misogyny that expands from the physical world into the digital environment.

Andrea Cornwall, a leading voice in shaping feminist discourse, commented on the existing gender binary lens of much of the work that goes into gender equality including the engagement of men and boys. She was joined by Archana Dwivedi, Director at Nirantar Trust India who introduced the findings from Nirantar’s research which revealed that the men and boys who seemed "macho" on the outside and inflicted violence and control over women and girls were dominated by fear. “Seeing patriarchy through the lens of vulnerability and fear provides more nuance”, she added.

Building on the conversation, Bafana Khumalo, Co-founder and Co-executive Director Sonke Gender Justice, South Africa, touched upon the issue of funding and reminded the donor community that while working with men and boys is indeed required, “it should not replace the fund going into women but should reinforce them.” Ghida Anani, Founder and Director at ABAAD in Lebanon, pushed the boundaries of the conversation by presenting their work on how they catalyze men towards gender equality and hold them accountable in their respective contexts.

With their ear to the ground through lived experiences at the grassroots level, the event concluded with panellists dwelling in the difficulties they face while engaging men and boys as allies for gender equality. While pushing for action, UNESCO promised full commitment and technical assistance to deliver on the panel’s conclusions.