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Strengthen positive, equal and respectful relations

2 minutes

In this article

For some men, making jokes and comments that reinforce the idea that women should be less powerful than them is a way of bonding and gaining the approval and respect of their peers.  

When aggression and disrespect towards women are seen as part of being ‘one of the boys’, it is more likely that violence towards women will be excused.  

What are the solutions?

  • Challenge peer relations between men that involve hostility or disrespect towards women. 
  • Challenge the idea that relationships between men and women are oppositional. 
  • Promote positive equal and respectful relationships between women and men, girls and boys, in all contexts. 
  • Work with children and young people to counter the early development of negative peer relationships and to promote respect and gender equality. 
Stylised illustration of six people standing side by side with more people in the background. One person is in a wheelchair, one is a teenager, two are older people. The group is made up of men and women.

Masculinity and male allyship

Respectful and equal relationships

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