Who Are The Men’s and Fathers’ Spokesmen?
I became aware of a local sucide prevention initiative recently. The minutes of their last meeting showed that in attendance were representatives of Schizophrenia Fellowship, the local District Health Board, Pull for Humanity, CYF and two female “educators” from the government Suicide Prevention Project. Others who had been invited included Ministry of Education, Police, Primary Health Organisations, Alcohol and Drug services, the local District Council, several iwi-based Maori trusts, a Pacific Island Trust, a Regional Workplace Development organisation.
Notice the ommision? There are no representatives of men’s or fathers’ groups.
Whom would one invite if one wanted men’s and fathers’ input? Try a NZ Google search for “men’s group” and you will find pages of Essentially Men and Promise Keepers before coming across anything like Union of Fathers or MENZ. What can we do about ensuring that everyone knows where to go if they want a men’s or fathers’ representative?
There’s always the Fathers Coalition 🙂
Thats the point Hans. Men are to disjointed. Are you going to or may I post this on Pauls-News?
Comment by Alastair — Mon 10th November 2008 @ 3:38 pm
Sure, anyone can post this elsewhere. Thanks for asking.
Comment by Hans Laven — Mon 10th November 2008 @ 4:35 pm
I attended the last SPINZ NZ Suicide Prevention symposium
in 2005 as a representative of the Fathers Coalition.
It was hijacked and ruined by militant homosexuals like the
pommy freak Tim Bummet.
I don’t expect Hans to do anything but bag me so what’s
the fucking point with these bullshit internet crap groups
like the pathetic pc wimps at Pauls News!
Go on Hans and Allan have a go !!
Comment by dad4justice — Mon 10th November 2008 @ 7:44 pm
Peter, all I have ever sought is for you to tone down the language and avoid threats of violence in your posts. I know you can do it; when you have been able to write calmly your contributions have been very informative and helpful. Many people put a lot of effort and time into forwarding the issues of concern for men, but all of our work loses credibility and the whole movement gets ignored with the kind of things you and a couple of others sometimes write. The man-haters read that stuff and laugh confidently, seeing it simply as confirmation that men are aggressive and stupid and unlikely to present any effective challenge to their mission to gain ever greater feminist domination.
Nothing is to be gained by calling someone you disagree with a “pommy freak”. Racist slurs will not gain political respect in the modern era. Nothing good can come out of calling your allies “pathetic pc wimps”. The movement has enough trouble working together towards any common goal without sabotague from within.
I can only repeat my request that you moderate your language and avoid threats, in which case I and many other look forward to your contributions.
Comment by Hans Laven — Tue 11th November 2008 @ 9:40 am
I don’t know exactly who is the representative for men regarding suicide. But I think the man in the ad for depression knows who may be. The mad Butcher most likely will also know. Both are really nice to talk to.
The Pharmacist near me is on a board for suicide for young men.
You could ask Chris (CEO) at Man Alive. They have a database for men’s support.
Comment by julie — Tue 11th November 2008 @ 3:31 pm
A Men’s Health group was convened about 6 months ago by Damien O’Connor as Associate Minister of Health. I was sent the minutes and offered my input for further meetings which go a polite letter declining to widen the membership and assuring me all was in hand. I wondered whose?
Peter (post #3) clearly you recognise that your head on approach is unhelpful by what you say yourself. I understood no one represented the Father’s Coalition and they wished to be a leaderless, unrepresented, non-hierarchical rabble. From what I have been told and read from Jim, Ben and others that is part of the mandate of the so called coalition, hence “(of a) father’s coalition” (sic).
That is exactly why some of us are not of a father’s coalition and feel comfortable with leadership, membership, democracy and put up with hierarchy and the workload that comes with such leadership. Union of Fathers, in contrast, works hard to be a cohesive group with philosophy, a research base, discipline and membership based. I’m more than happy to be a “pathetic pc wimp” if it is an effective way of generating debate and being a catalyst for positive change.
Allan Harvey
Union of Fathers (Wellington)
Comment by allan Harvey — Tue 11th November 2008 @ 6:28 pm
Systemic funded agencies, the Media, and other interested parties looking for solutions rather than feel good banter to maintain status quo, are well aware of people within a “fathers coalition” who are willing and more than able to provide input from their own and many others experiences.
However, most of these representatives cannot afford the luxury of being solely advocates on behalf of the issues that men face, we have to work or we starve.
Men are not able to “Heather Henare Grandstand” when yet another women slips through the cracks of gender protection and faces criminal charges perpetrated against man or child.
There are many correspondents within this forum that are able to provide valid input, do not hide behind psuedonym, John Potter himself could well be a point of contact to establish possible spokespeople for input on any type of issue facing the male species.
Google Search:
Mens issues NZ
Result first and second from 1,190,000
1. MENZ Issues MENZ Issues
2. NZ Republicans Burn Protection Orders NZ Republicans Burn Protection Orders
I was being prepared to be hung, drawn and quartered but being a participant of a “fathers coalition” I had the opportunity to vindicate myself.
Never more so than now.
I arose from that turmoil, which thus thwarted yet another ignored statistic to male suicide.
Mens input is readily available to be put on the map, however if agencies,media choose not to reach into the glovebox to ascertain the way, odds are, they wont reach a desired destination.
Kindest Regards
Paul Catton
East Auckland Refuge for Men and Families
(09)271 3020
Comment by Paul Catton — Tue 11th November 2008 @ 7:10 pm