The Garden of Hope Foundation held the 4th V-men Charity Run at Bi-Tan River Bank Park on sunshine Saturday November 18. The activity also brought the Biggest OBR event among Northeastern Asia to call for men join in anti- gender violence movement.
It was estimated 4,000 people participated GOH’s annual V-Men run activity. The specialty of this year’s V-Men Run was five experiencing areas. They were high-heel wearing for men, male emotion, pregnancy suit wearing, One Billion Rising area, and area of experiencing discrimination towards women. Several celebrities, politicians and social entrepreneurs also participated in the V-Men Charity Run and echoed the international OBR campaign by raising their forefinger and called out for rising, distrusting and connection to fight against gender based violence.
Chi, Hui-Jung, CEO of GOH argued that in Taiwan, every half hour a woman applies for protection order from court; every three hours a woman goes to court for suffering intimate violence. It is not enough to just ask men not to be abusers but to urge them to be activists. It is because men are also victims of gender based violence. We should encourage all men embrace their inner weakness and sentimental emotion. Treat these natural reactions with positive attitude. For doing this makes them human, makes them alive. Through understanding weakness, fear and those “not so masculine” mental and physical reactions of men, men can then totally abandon pro-violent and pro-masculine harmful culture. Without men’s participation, a gender equity society can never be achieved. GOH will launch a male based group next year to serve men who suffer from patriarchy and gender based violence.
V-Men Charity Run has four callings: 1).Valentine-be a nice valentine, 2).Vagina-be vagina friendly, 3).Violence: anti- gender based violence, and 4).Victory: Create win-win intimate relationship.
In addition, every November 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. To echo it, GOH has been holding the V-Men Charity Run for over past four years. We hope to help the violence survivors and children to reconstruct their lives and to build a violence free society.
