52.9% of Boys Sexual Abused

The study conducted by the Indian Govt. Women and Child Development Ministry said 53.2% of children had experienced one or more forms of sexual abuse. Of this, 52.9 % were boys. Boys of all ages, backgrounds and across states had reported sexual abuse.* #humanrights NOT #genderrights #protectoursons #givethemavoice

Men and the Stigma of Mental Illness

The Good Men Project  posted a great article by  Dr. Narveen Dosanjh . Here are some highlight’s :  Men are subjected to a culture where the standards of masculinity are literally making them sick.  Mental Health disorders are common throughout the United States, affecting tens of millions of people each year. But only half of those affected receive treatment. It is imperative that we look at gender differences in not only the experience of mental illness but also in the ability to get help and engage in treatment when necessary.   Depression  in men is not uncommon and often goes unrecognized and untreated. Research has shown that while men develop the standard symptoms of depression, they often experience it differently and may have different ways of coping. In men, depression can be a serious medical condition. More than six million men suffer from depression each year. Many men try to deal with it on their own, but depression symptoms can make them chronically miserable. Depression consequently also puts men at risk for  suicides.      Although women are more likely to attempt suicide, men are more likely to lethally complete it when they do make an attempt; ending their life in an instant, without any second chances and usually without many or even any pervious cries for help, leaving loved ones shocked and bewildered. Sadly, men have to hide behind the facades they feel impelled to build. It is usually very difficult for men to come forward, open up, and engage in some form of mental health treatment. Men also have traditionally shied away from therapy because talking about their feelings is viewed as negative and non-masculine – as going against the expected male image. We have to accept that we live in a culture where men often feel pressure to conform to an unrealistic macho image. The measure of their masculinity seems to have an inverse relationship to the expression of their vulnerability, and it is literally making them sick. Real men are not supposed to be weak, break down, or cry. They are supposed to be invincible, unbreakable super-heroes. Except, they are not. They are only human.   For the complete post please click here.   The post  Men and the Stigma of Mental Illness  appeared first on  GIVE THEM A VOICE .

People are finally starting to be concerned about the effect of pornography on kids

I found it very interesting that two stories it the web about the same time, dealing with similar issues. One talked about the impact of pornography on children, the other talked about pornography grooming children for the sex industry…finally people are starting to put the pieces together!!  ———   Lifesitenews.com  reports A UK children’s help line charity says that an alarming number of children as young as 12 think watching pornography is just a normal part of life, though many of them have seen images that haunt them and some are worried about being addicted to porn.  A survey of about 700 youngsters by ChildLine, a service of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), found that 20 percent of 12 to 13-year-olds said they had seen upsetting or shocking pornography, about 12 percent in the same age group admitted to having participated in making a sexually explicit video, and one in ten said they fear they already have a porn addiction.  “We know from the young people who contact ChildLine that viewing porn is a part of everyday life, and our poll shows that one in five 12 to 13-year-olds thinks that watching porn is normal behaviour,” said Peter Liver, a director of ChildLine Services.  “Children of all ages today have easy access to a wide range of pornography,” Liver told the  BBC . “If we as a society shy away from talking about this issue, we are failing the thousands of young people it is affecting.”   Rosalind Prober of Beyond Borders  was talking with  NewsTalk980  and she said   “Porn today is not your yesterday’s porn of Playboy, Hustler magazine — nothing like that,” said president Rosalind Prober of  Beyond Borders  during an interview on John Gormley Live on Wednesday.  “It involves a lot of degradation, a lot of violence, a lot of male-on-female pain, non-consensual type of activities, group activities,” she said, adding that exposure to porn is impacting children…..Prober said through their research they found that girls are being monitored fairly well online, but boys are not. She said that some experts at the symposium described male sexuality as being “hijacked” because  boys are looking to porn to educate them about sex. But the message they are getting doesn’t have anything to do with relationships, love or intimacy.      The post  People are finally starting to be concerned about the effect of pornography on kids  appeared first on  GIVE THEM A VOICE .

Men and the Stigma of Mental Illness

I came across this article thought I would post it

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The Good Men Project  posted a great article by  Dr. Narveen Dosanjh . Here are some highlight’s :  Men are subjected to a culture where the standards of masculinity are literally making them sick.  Mental Health disorders are common throughout the United States, affecting tens of millions of people each year. But only half of those affected receive treatment. It is imperative that we look at gender differences in not only the experience of mental illness but also in the ability to get  ..

#noworkingtitle #theAuthor #givethemavoice

Best way to stop child sexual abuse is to talk about it

I read this and thought I would post it.

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The Hindu has posted a great article on entitled “Best way to stop child sexual abuse is to talk about it”.  Please click through to view the whole article.   As the  World Day for Prevention of Abuse and Violence against Children  is marked today, for some advocacy groups, such observations are irrelevant – their fight is unceasing and against an increasingly bigger enemy – apathy.  The situation on the ground, particularly in child sexual abuse (CSA), remains precarious.  “The best way to stop CSA is to talk about it,” Ketan J. Vora, director, Project Komal, an initiative of the Tiruchi chapter of Young Indians, affiliated to Confederation of Indian Industry, told The Hindu. The one-year-old project, inspired by an episode of actor Aamir Khan’s talk show Satyamev Jayate, focuses on spreading awareness about CSA in Tiruchi district’s schools, and supports the local branch of Childline India Foundation, which is in charge of intervention and rehabilitation through its helpline service ‘1098’.  “Children should know what is ‘good’ touch and ‘bad’ touch,” said Fathima Bathool Maluk, chair, Young Indians. Rather than go into the root causes, the project has focused on creating a basic awareness about child sexual abuse as the perpetrators were usually known to the victims, she added.  Around 1,200 children had been exposed to the programme in Tiruchi district, which involves the screening of an animation film (titled ‘Komal’) on the subject followed by group discussions with student volunteers. Project Komal’s volunteers are drawn from M.A.M. College, Care Group of Institutions and Bishop Heber College.  “Students below class 6 are quite open to discussing the subject,” said Darshini, a third-year engineering student who is a Project Komal volunteer. “It’s the older children who don’t want to talk. But they all know this problem exists.”  “We have learned in the past year that child sexual abuse is very much in the closet. The teachers are unwilling to talk about it. The school managements are worried about the backlash from parents,” Ponnambalam Balakrishnan, Co-Chair, Young Indians. But the situation has changed of late, he says. “Now the demand from schools is greater, after they see the media coverage. They feel the sensitisation programme is something safe they can get involved with.”  With a proposal to initiate Project Komal in all the 34 chapters of Young Indians, the programme will gain greater national exposure, say the officials.  But clearly more needs to be done, feels Childline Nodal Director J. Godwin Prem Singh.  “The National Crime Bureau’s annual report mentions rape, molestation of women, and child labour, but not child sexual abuse,” he says.  “We have got good support from the authorities, but it is still basically 15-20 people in a city of 30 lakh people. We need to do something very concrete regarding labour mobilisation,” he says.  The post  Best way to stop child sexual abuse is to talk about it  appeared first on  GIVE THEM A VOICE .

Like trash

I found this and thought I could share it.

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It feels like this, waiting for the hammer to drop, waiting for people to move on. Some say it’s negativity, I say I’m just not an idiot. A lifetime of WTF does tend to prepare you for what happens when those you thought were closest to you, decided that they want to graduate from having to deal with what you constantly live with.             The post  Like trash  appeared first on  No Working Title .

#noworkingtitle #givethemavoice