THA to host first-ever Men’s Debate

THA Presiding Officer Abby Taylor at the Assembly Legislature, Scarborough. -

HISTORY will be created on November 10 when the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) hosts its first-ever International Men’s Debate in the Assembly Legislature, Scarborough, from 10 am.

The debate, which focuses on mental health and identity, will see men and boys from all sectors of society assume the role of assemblymen and councillors in what is expected to be a spirited session.

Media practitioner Akinlabi Holder will perform the role of chief secretary, while Keigon Denoon will serve as the minority leader and Akiel Andrews, the presiding officer.

Justin John, one of the event’s coordinators, told Newsday that the idea for a men’s debate was conceptualised several months ago by staff in the Assembly Legislature. Ajay Alleyne, a former Tobago Day youth debater, also played a key role in the project.

John said over the years, the Legislature has organised events to mark International Women’s Day and even hosted youth debates but it had never conceptualised an initiative exclusively with men in mind.

He said THA Presiding Officer Abby Taylor applauded the concept and gave the green light to structure a programme.

John added that the response was phenomenal.

“It has ballooned into something more than we expected, especially due to the buy-in from members of the public, members of staff and the THA, where we are seeing that men are coming forward,” he said.

The training sessions, John said, were especially enlightening.

“We are realising that within the conversations we are having that there is a lot of gender disparity when it comes to gender-based programmes. There are a lot of women-based programmes but not for men, particularly in the Tobago space.”

He said that while there are some programmes targeting men, such as the Division of Health, Wellness and Social Protection’s Blue Room initiative, stakeholder sessions hosted by the gender unit of the division showed real disparities in how men are viewed and treated.

“You feel like a minority in your workplace. Boys feel like a minority in school. And so, taking all of that into consideration, we said let us put this debate out and we crafted a motion geared towards the THA creating a sustainable, multi-sectoral programme to develop men and boys in relation to coping mechanisms and how to deal with male identity and mental health.”

John said the initial discussions also took into account the number of suicides that had occurred in the country at the time.

“Seeing how suicide, mental health, substance abuse and lack of coping mechanisms drove many young men and boys into suicide, it was felt that, for our first debate, we should touch on something that is, for a lack of a better word, taboo.”

He said experts from various fields were also brought in to shed light on the issue, among other topics.

“These persons provided statistics for our debaters. For instance, we learnt that the mortality rate of men is high. More men are dying in Trinidad and Tobago, and more men are committing suicide than women.

“Then it went deeper as well. Do they feel inadequate? Is there a lack of research as to what causes men to commit suicide? There is actually a lack of research on those things.”

John said in a broader sense, the debate will not just deal with the problems and issues confronting men.

“It could also assist the single mother who is raising a boy because that young boy could either be a problem or a promise.”

The debate, he added, will ask the question, “Where has society failed?

“It will also acknowledge that we, too, have failed ourselves.”

John is hoping that the debate, which is expected to be held annually, will see the establishment of a community for men.

“Men related to the conversations in the training sessions, and there was a lot of mentorship for the younger debaters. But they do not have a community per se.

“Yeah, they might have a brethren or someone they lime with. But do they even feel comfortable telling someone else that they are feeling down and why?”

He urged policymakers to listen to the debate.

“I want them to listen to the ideas crafted and presented in the contributions. Hopefully, we could get some increase in funding or some equality in funding when it comes to gender-based programmes.”