Male Allyship in the Community
What is male allyship?
One definition is: A male ally is any male that is willing to advocate and speak up in support of gender equality.
Male allyship and tackling the rise of violence against women are both subjects that I’m passionate about. Wiltshire Community Foundation has an event all about Inspiring Confident Allyship on 22nd November.
The event is inviting individuals, companies and small businesses to join together to drive social change, raise awareness of gender inequality and the importance of male allyship in creating a safer, fairer and thriving society.
Sadly, harassment, gender-based violence, workplace inequality, discrimination and stereotyping are far too often commonplace in our society. Aiming for gender equality is a crucial step to tackling these issues. Inequality is often identified as a root cause for abuse.
The day will be hosted by James Threlfall MBE, an advocate for youth empowerment. Other speakers will be Frank Mullane MBE, an expert on family support and domestic abuse prevention; Jeremy Blain, a global leadership and workplace culture specialist,
And Kate Rowland from Swindon Domestic Abuse Support Service.
During the day, the speakers will share their insights on how male allyship can play a critical role in challenging negative behaviour and advancing equality in professional and personal environments.
Wiltshire Community Foundation Joint Chief Executive Fiona Oliver said: “This important event will provide an opportunity for the business community to come together and learn more about the role of male allyship and how this can improve workplace culture so we have safer, equitable, thriving communities for all.”
Chartered accountants, Charlton Baker are sponsoring the event, which means all ticket proceeds will go towards the Foundation’s Women and Girls Fund.
In my TV career, I worked on a documentary about domestic violence with Frank Mullane, whose family suffered a tragedy and terrible loss.
His sister Julia had confided to Frank that her marriage was unhappy and her husband Alan was controlling and abusive, and she intended to ask him for a divorce. When she told her husband, he threatened her, saying her would take both his own life and hers. He left their home and Frank drove straight over to support Julia, staying with her for the weekend, during which time they phoned the police. Despite being asked for help, the police did nothing. For 14 months her husband terrorised her, yet he was never interviewed or apprehended by the police.
Finally, in 2003 the husband arrived at the house with the lie of offering to take their son for a driving lesson. Pemberton shot and killed their son outside the house and then broke into the house to kill both Julia and then himself. Luckily, Julia’s older child was not home.
Five years after that harrowing experience, Frank founded AAFDA (Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse). He and his family had campaigned for 5 years to uncover the facts. The review following their case, The Pemberton Review was described as ‘setting a gold standard’. Following this, Frank lobbied to ensure that domestic homicide reviews became law, and he also helped to develop the statutory guidance underpinning them.
Frank, the Chief Executive Officer of AAFDA was awarded his MBE in 2019 for services to families bereaved by domestic homicide. The award recognises Frank’s ‘unwavering commitment to raising the status of families in all their interactions with criminal justice professionals after domestic homicide.’
Whilst working in TV and working as a journalist and reporter, on occasions working on murder cases, I came across several stories that remain with me forever. This is one of those stories – it will never leave me.
To book your place on the Wiltshire Community Foundations’ event – Inspiring confident Allyship- click here