Be a part of history.

Every day we hear news stories about violence but rarely, if ever, are they linked to masculinity. It’s time to make the connection between the epidemic of men’s violence in our country and what society is teaching boys about masculinity. The traditional “boys will be boys” mentality is beginning to change. The Obama Administration has prioritized the engagement of boys and young men in efforts to reduce violence, especially violence against women. Now, for the first time, the nation’s leading non-profit organizations are coming together to launch the most comprehensive effort centered on young men and healthy, non-violent masculinity in history.

What is the Healthy Masculinity Action Project (HMAP)?
The Healthy Masculinity Action Project (HMAP) is a national grassroots movement to eradicate the harmful expectations and stereotypes our society teaches boys about what it means to be a man. A two year initiative, HMAP aims to build a new generation of male leaders who will model strength without violence and serve as positive change makers in society – taking their communities from awareness to action. Every day men, women and teens nationwide are all driving HMAP.

Who is behind HMAP?
Spearheaded by Men Can Stop Rape, every major men’s empowerment organization is also behind HMAP, including organizing partners: the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence, Men Stopping Violence, Coach for America, Women of Color Network, and A CALL TO MEN.

What will HMAP include?
The National Launch: The Healthy Masculinity Summit is the most critical juncture for HMAP, bringing together the best of the best - more than 200 industry leaders from various sectors, including policy, business, education and health - to to come up with the best strategies to engage men and boys on this issue and uncover how masculinity continues to create environments where men’s violence against women, girls, and other men has been normalized and accepted. (Oct. 17-19, 2012, Washington, D.C.).  

Town Hall Meetings, leaders from HMAP training instituties will activate across the country, hosting these grassroots gatherings in urban, suburban, rural and frontier communities, and develop action plans to promote healthy masculinity, build stronger and healthier neighborhoods and improve lives (Spring 2012).

The Healthy MasculinityTraining Institute, is a three-day intensive training on “Healthy Masculinity: Awareness-to-Action” that will mobilize HMAP ambassadors and equip them with tools to present in schools and local forums on the importance of healthy non-violent masculinity (June 2013, Atlanta, GA).

The Youth Leadership Summit, will bring together young men to collaborate and develop healthy masculinity action plans for implementation in schools nationwide (October 2013, Louisville, KY).

Utimately, HMAP will:

Train more than 1,000 ambassadors to spread the movement nationwide and take action by holding community town halls, presenting on healthy, non-violent masculinity in schools and working with local organizations on community outreach and programs to prevent violence against women.