The Plural Masculinities Centre is offering an extensive programme of activities this year to foster the social transformation towards healthier, more open and respectful relational models. The centre opened in November and is also the new home of the Men’s Support Service (SAH) to promote non-violent relationships.
The diverse range of activities for 2022 is organised into nine blocks, consisting of very different spheres in terms of new masculinities.
The first consists of online training options for people representing organisations and for the general public, covering topics divided into four areas: texts and contexts for masculinities, male violence, democratisation of care work and the involvement of men in gender justice. Training will be offered in person four times a year, using the same content but with different methods. This block will also include specific training for City Council professionals.
The second block consists of sessions open to citizens to work on aspects relating to masculinity, with workshops, talks and monographic activities which have just been launched in face-to-face sessions.
The third block consists of action which intersects with all other services offered by the city, such as the Neighbourhood Plan, groups of people in vulnerable situations, Vila Veïna (the pioneering municipal initiative to address care), awareness campaigns in the sphere of sport and a programme on masculinities in major cultural events in the city.
Specific resources to promote activities by organisations make up the fourth block. With a budget of 30,000 euros, 25 out of the 46 projects put forward have been chosen. In all, 122 sessions are to be held at the Plural in the form or workshops, dialogues and discussions to work on aspects of masculinity such as managing emotions, recognising vulnerability and interdependence, promoting active participation by men and the transformation of patriarchal culture.
The fifth block in the programme at the Plural includes action to raise awareness in specific sectors, for instance among children and teenagers.
The sixth block centres on support for the paternity of future fathers wishing to share the gestation and post-natal experience and get support in the paternity process. These courses consist of seven sessions, with individual and group support throughout the process.
To foster debate and participation from men, the seventh block consists of a un virtual space using the open participation platform Decidim.
The eighth block in the programme works on violence with aggressors and is offered through the SAH, which will continue working on care and support for people who commit sexist violence and will add more support groups.
Finally, the centre will hold an annual day to reflect on and raise awareness on masculinity. The first of these was held in October when the Plural opened, with over 500 people taking part.
With a professional team of ten specialists, the Plural Masculinities Centre offers various free services, such as individual and group psychological support, legal and technical advice, activities on egalitarian masculinities, training in masculinity and gender, resources and tools for citizens and professionals and support for activities with organisations. The centre is open to people who live, work or study in Barcelona, regardless of where they are registered as living, as well as social organisations and stakeholders in the city.