In light of recent events, the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women (MCBW), of which Tubman is a member, sent this email to its member organizations regarding the connections between toxic masculinity, misogyny, and gender-based violence with mass shootings.
Dear Members,
We are deeply saddened by the terror unleashed this weekend in Texas and Ohio – on the heels of the shooting in California one week prior. With the nation, we mourn the lives lost and stand in solidarity with the families in their grief.
As advocates working to end relationship violence, we encounter the personal horrors of domestic violence every day. We are, unfortunately, all too familiar with violence, the ways it can take shape, and the impact it has on survivors, children, families, and entire communities.
We know domestic terrorists like those who unleashed mass violence in El Paso, Dayton, and Gilroy fit a specific profile: they are white men who have been activated by toxic masculinity and white supremacy. We are trained to notice and name patterns of violence. We clearly see this mass violence is targeted and systemic. As advocates working to end domestic and sexual violence in our communities and promote safety for victim/survivors and their children, we have an intimate knowledge of the ways “private violence” isn’t private at all. We understand how patriarchal supremacy and toxic masculinity incite violence at home and beyond. The men who were mobilized to murder scores of people - namely people and communities of color - in public spaces had documented histories of misogyny. The Dayton shooter killed his sister.
The shooters also had documented histories of white supremacy and hate speech. As advocates working to end relationship violence, we need to acknowledge, understand, confront, and transform the critical ways in which xenophobia and racism perpetuate violence: at home, in public, and in our work. To end gender-based violence, we must work to end white supremacy, racism, and oppression.
Given this knowledge and the urgency of this time, we are propelled to act. We would like to pass along the following resource to you and your program:
Futures Without Violence offers the following tools and resources specifically for advocates – like us – to spark conversations on the ways that racism and oppression have shaped our anti-violence movements and how we can dismantle racism in our organizations and communities: https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/health/racism/
Included in this compilation by Futures Without Violence are healing justice resources for advocates of color and some specific ways white advocates can promote racial justice and self-accountability in their work.
We are so grateful to work towards a violence free Minnesota with you. Please, reach out to any MCBW staff if you have questions or concerns. Together, we can live free of violence.
In solidarity and gratitude.
