Jackson Katz discusses men’s role in gender violence
Jackson Katz, Ph.D., spoke to a filled Cardinal John P. Foley Campus Center on Oct. 11.
Katz, known internationally for his work addressing gender violence, delivered a lecture titled “Taking it Personally: Why Gender Violence is an Issue for Men.” The lecture was funded by the ‘It’s On Us’ grant awarded to St. Joe’s by the Governor’s Office, said Mary-Elaine Perry, Ed.D.,Title IX Bias coordinator.
“We need more men who are willing to say some of this stuff out loud and not just support women from the back,” Katz said. “We need more men who have the guts to say some of this.”
Christopher Morrin, sexual misconduct prevention specialist in the Office of Student Outreach and Support, said he has a particular interest in growing male engagement in combating gender violence and sexual assault.
“Hearing [Katz] speak doesn’t make you defensive,” Morrin said. “As a guy, you don’t even need to know much about the topic. The way he speaks about it just makes a lot of sense.”
According to Katz, the vast majority of men are not perpetrators, but their silence contributes to the larger issue.
Perry agrees that most men are not violent.
“Most men are not going to hurt someone they love, but those men are able to stop others,” Perry said. “And that is really the approach we want to take.”
According to Katz, standing up and speaking out within leadership positions or athletics can be integral to preventing gender violence.
“Imagine if you heard from the juniors and seniors on your team, ‘One thing you have to know is that we don’t treat women with disrespect,’” Katz said.
Brian Markoski ’20 was one of the many students at the lecture. As a member of the baseball team, he was required to attend.
“After listening to everything he had to say, I wish I would’ve [wanted to come] in the beginning,” Markoski said. “It was pretty eye-opening. I liked his points about how more men need to speak up.”
Being proactive in stopping gender violence is necessary to create a better culture for all people, Markoski said, adding that it is more beneficial to step in rather than stay on the sidelines as an incident happens.