June 24, 2005

Members of the MGH Men Against Abuse group

Stepping Up to Stop Domestic Abuse

For most people, a mention of Father's Day conjures up a range of familiar images: gifts of striped ties, coffee mugs and an afternoon devoted to 18 holes of golf. For a new group at the MGH, however, this Father's Day was the launching point for an entirely different sort of recognition. MGH Men Against Abuse, a subgroup of the MGH Domestic Violence Working Group, was formed by a group of male employees to create awareness and provide education to men about domestic abuse.

To emphasize the central role men can play in ending the mistreatment of women, the group chose the week before Father's Day to introduce their initiative. In the United States, roughly 85 percent of domestic abuse — which includes not only physical violence, but also verbal abuse, threats, intimidation and physical and economic isolation — is perpetrated against women. It is estimated that between 960,000 to three million incidences of abuse take place each year. A broad range of support and awareness groups exist, many of them led by women. To be maximally effective, however, the MGH group felt it was critical to make its initiative by men and for men.

"Domestic abuse is about power and control," says Matthew Thomas of MGH Police and Security and one of the founding members of MGH Men Against Abuse. "When it comes from one man to another, it's harder to ignore the message that abusive behaviors are not acceptable. This group is here for the express purpose of delivering that message." In addition to Thomas, the core members of the group include Jim Heffernan, chief financial officer of the Mass General Physicians Organization, Lenny Debenedictis from the MGH Employee Assistance Program, and Rabbi Ben Lanckton. Over the past three months, this core group has expanded, meeting every Wednesday to define its goals, recruit new members and organize its inaugural events.

The group hosted an information table in the Main Corridor June 15 to 17 and distributed educational materials around the theme, "See it, step up, stop it." The group also held a special service in the MGH Chapel June 15, led by Rabbi Lanckton, to remember victims of domestic abuse. For 45 minutes, members of the group, the MGH community and survivors of abuse shared stories, inspirational readings, poems and nondenominational prayers.

"The service was a powerful experience, really bringing to life the reason this group is here," says Heffernan. The group's awareness efforts center on acknowledgment of the problem, recognition of the attitudes and actions that can perpetuate sexism and violence, and identification of ways to ensure that women are treated with equality and respect. To halt the cycle of abuse, role-modeling for young boys also is encouraged. "Our attitudes toward women get shaped at a very young age," Heffernan continues. "It's vitally important to provide positive examples of respect and power-sharing to even the youngest boys."

An MGH Men Against Abuse reading group is planned, and other future activities may include a fall rally on the Bulfinch lawn and participation in a Boston-area community service project. The group is actively seeking new members. For more information, visit the MGH Men Against Abuse website at www.massgeneral.org/menagainstabuse or email mghmenagainstabuse@partners.org.