Marches

Walking for Men & Boys

Lead organisation: Split the Difference.

Edinburgh march. Dec 2020

March postponed due to COVID restrictions. Re-planned for when it’s allowed!

Date: Saturday 12th December 2020

Assembly point: Edinburgh Castle, Castlehill, Edinburgh, EH1 2NG

Assembly Time – 13:30 hrs

Procession start time – 14:00 hrs

Procession end time – 15:00 at Scottish Parliament Building, Edinburgh, EH99 1SP incl Speakers, Moment of Silence, Music, Interviews, Hot Chocolate

End of Event 16:30 hrs

Walking for Men & Boys is organised by Split The Difference and hosted by Gender Parity UK. With this event, we want to raise awareness of men’s issues while also highlighting the help that is already out there in form of support organisations. The march from Edinburgh Castle to the Scottish Parliament is meant to create visibility, to show the general public what some of the issues are that many men deal with. At the same time, we want to celebrate men and boys and the tone of the march will be positive and in tune with the festive season.

Banners and leaflets will communicate the reason for the march and some of the issues that need to be addressed in a positive, apolitical and non-controversial way.

From (estimated) 3.30 pm til 5 pm we will have a gathering in front of the Scottish Parliament. Hot Chocolate and (non-alcoholic) Mulled Wine will keep us warm while we hear from representatives from some wonderful organisations that help Men and Boys. We will have a moment of silence to think of the men that ended their lives, those who died due to lack of help and those who died protecting and helping others. We prepared music for the day and Split the Difference will conduct interviews with people to raise awareness online. 

Over 60 organisations that help men and boys are being invited to join this march and to show that there is help and support out there. 

Our team will promote the event by putting up posters, handing out leaflets, and it will be promoted in media and social media. 

The feedback so far has been very positive and we expect this event to be a wonderful first step to highlight te issues of men and boys in Scotland

London march. Sept 2020

A march was organised in London in September 2020. This clip shows the march in action.

Futures marches

The London and Edinburgh marches are planned as annual events. A further march is planned in Wales.

Issues for men in Scotland

Education

Boys are increasingly falling behind on all levels of education and there are less and less male teachers as positive role models

  • National 5 for all subjects: A grade: Girls 39.2%, boys 30.8
  • Entrants to higher education: female 58.1 %, male 41.7%
  • In primary schools, 89% of teachers are female
  • In secondary schools 64% of teachers are female

Homelessness

80% of rough sleepers are male, but they are not seen as vulnerable people. Many suffer under mental health issues, experience of domestic abuse and addiction

  • Around 5,300 adults sleep rough at least once in a year in Scotland (Scottish Household Survey)
  • About 80% of rough sleepers are men. (Simonscotland.org)
  • 54% of applicants to Scottish councils are male but 80% of rough sleepers are male
  • Best practice for victims of domestic abuse that experience homelessness excludes male victims

Domestic Abuse

There are an estimated 540,000 male victims of Domestic Abuse in Scotland but next to no support for them, the system actively discriminates against them, media ignores them.

  • An estimated 540,000 male victims of Domestic abuse.
  • 10% of men (17% of women) experienced physical or psychological partner abuse.
  • 20% of cases of Domestic Abuse are reported by men
  • No shelters for men

Suicide

Suicide is the leading cause of death for men under 50.  Almost 600 men take their own lives in Scotland every year. Scotland has the highest rate in the UK.

  • The highest rate in Scotland is among men aged 35-44 (36 per 100.000)
  • 37% of Scottish men experience suicidal thoughts due to stress (Mental Health Foundation Scotland)
  • 21.9 men per 100,000 (7.3 women)
  • 581 male suicides (2018)
  • 75% of suicides are men
  • Men who self-harmed were over twice as likely to have suffered partner abuse (Cambridge research programme in A&E)
  • Scotland has had a higher recorded suicide rate than the UK as a whole since the early 1990s” (isdscotland.org)
  • Men living in a deprived area are 10 times more likely to die from suicide (Samaritans)

Mental Health

40% of men don’t talk to anyone about their mental health and are far less likely to seek professional help. Less than 15% of psychologists are men, but many men prefer to talk to a men about their issues.  

  • 53% of those surveyed reporting that stress had an impact on sleep (https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/)
  • 56% reported feelings of anxiety as a result of stress in their lives (https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/)
  • 40% of men will not talk to anyone about mental health (Prioric Clinic)
  • 85% of Psychologists are Women (BACP survey)

Hate Crime Law

The Scottish Government proposed women to become a protected group under Hate Crime Laws but explicitly excludes men. But men experience at least the same amount of hostility and disrespect based on their gender.

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