Introduction

In recent weeks, the Chilean society has been hit with a string of information that, once
again, talks about the violence of gender. These related to the abuse suffered by women
the length and breadth of the country and in which, the authorities say have taken letter.
The case more striking during the year so far occurred in the city of Coyhaique, where
Nabila Rifo was attacked brutally by his partner up to the end of becoming blind due to
extraction who suffered from their eyeballs. Unfortunately, this case - but not with the
same degree of evil - is frequently repeated. Seems to be that some part of our
population is still considering that domestic violence, and in particular against women, it
is something ingrained in our culture, its part of our everyday lives and which is only
reacting once violence is executed and have a new victim.
Perhaps, much of the above - this implied way to accept the established as part of the
routine in the private of our country history - is due to the existing conception about
masculinity that we have as a society. It is this concept, poorly understood and which is
use and abuse, is it that makes us believe that there are certain behaviors that should
be accepted with naturalness, as a condition of being men and the relationship with their
partners. However, the concept goes far beyond, escaping from this look superficial and
crammed in common places.

Domestic violence against men

In this essay, we want to deal with masculinity and also domestic violence, but going
beyond the contingency or the front page of the newspapers. In the lines that come we
want to return to the case of Nabila Rifo tangentially, but not to delve into violence
against women, nor to exemplify that fact in a poorly understood masculinity, but to
record and analyse what lies behind this concept and, above all it makes what happens
clear when violence no longer falls on women, but the gender that traditionally has
applied force and violence inside and outside the domestic life. In this writing we wonder
what happens when the man is the abused, what happens when their physical and
psychological condition is passed to carry, what lies beyond the visible traces which
leaves the violence perpetrated against the male gender by their partners?
Finally, in the final part of this work, we make a proposal about how to address this
issue, aside from education, and on the other, from the communication, dissemination
and the necessary measures to prevent and denounce domestic violence against men
in Chile.

In recent months, occasions where we have seen or read about gender-based

violence have been multiple, and this tends to be automatically assimilated with the
force exerted against women. Have ever asked us as a society what is the frequency
with which men are assaulted by their partners? Have we ever have imagined the
consequences, not only physical, that derives an aggression of this kind against men?
In these lines, we do outreach to this matter and associate it with the concept of
masculinity, making clear its origin, development and variants semantics involved, but
above all, wanting to make visible that masculinity is strongly affected in men who are
attacked. We want to make palpable as a series of conceptual buildings that we have
created in our society are collapsing inside of men who are victims of gender-based
violence.
During the 70s there was an explosion of new research and publications that talked
about the concept of masculinity and, in particular, on the role of men in modern society.
With the passage of time, grew the idea that there was a hierarchy of masculinity
(Connell, 2005), stratification in which, for example, gays were outside; so, it can be
deduced that a series of prejudice and violent methods against sexual minorities was
established in the same way with this idea. .
To this speech, implicitly, he adhered to the Church, the media, the State and civil
society organizations, being rather transversal to, for example, social class or age
ranges. As already hinted, this male hegemony or hegemony of masculinity, is
something that is built and transmuted with the passage of time, however, there are
certain guidelines of conduct and patterns that appear to be permanent with the passing
of the years and visible in different demographic and geographic contexts. The
differences between the sexes, according to strengthen this idea of masculinity, it is
possible to be seen from an early age in males.

For example, during the youth, activities and personal skills of men, associated with
the sport, are seen as the first sign of masculinity, as well as the high risk activities.
Further on are: the predominance of men in the tasks that are carried out in the public
sphere, unlike women, mainly present in the functions of private life, where the first has
the Mission of take home pay, and where she should know to manage - in the broadest
sense of the word - that amount of money.
In view and considering these patterns of behavior that is socially awarded to male
behavior, how much it affects in terms of psychological, emotional and physical violence
that is exerted over men on the part of their partners? Nabila Rifo condemnable case,
quoted at the beginning of this text, and many others are known by the Chileans for
graphing the impact suffered by women who are victims of domestic violence. But, what
happens when men are the attacked?
Unfortunately, there are also many cases of men, married, either they are cohabitants
who have been assaulted by their partners, and have kept silence, in most of the times,
to not be the subject of mockery by relatives, friends and acquaintances.
Until today there is little literature on the subject.
Perhaps, for some, the issue is new, or simply, due in part to the masculinity of which
we speak more above, this subject has become a complete taboo in our society. There
are also other reasons why assaulted men do not report these cases; most are of the
cultural reasons installed in society. Among these are two: the majority of men unaware
of the law that covers and protects this type of aggression, perhaps largely because
there is no institution or Ministry who see neither these cases, nor the situation of men in
general.

In this regard, it is interesting to compare the situation of men attacked today, for
example, during the dictatorship, where not received shelter and protection from the
authorities of the day (Pieper & Campbell, 2009).
In a way, you could say that this is an invisible violence therefore remains hidden in
private, without express, for the reasons already mentioned, where the masculine role
plays an important part.

Some of the topics that the experts have been investigating say relationship with: the
category of abuse, that man can properly describe the type of violence which has been
subjected by their partner, physical, sexual or other. Cultural beliefs are also relevant
about what are perceived as typical of each gender roles.
Among the causes that underlie and which men do not report are: masculinity or
patriarchal ideology already cited, full of stereotypes with respect to what is expected to
be a man and how it should behave against society and her partner.
For his part, what it leads a woman to attack her partner? There are several women
who blame their partner, and among the reasons they refer to the intake of alcohol by
man, the male attention to trivial things above other issues. There are also women who
mentioned how causal irritable character of them or their physical build above theirs.
Finally, some women responsible and justify their actions against their partner due to the
poor communication in the relationship, cohabitation or marriage.
Against this, there is a very interesting point we will see later in an attached proposal
and telling relationship with the role of the media against this issue. The opinion of
experts is that the media do not include men assaulted in their coverage of news to
arguing that it is not displayed as a social problem, at least not in comparison to what
happens when women are assaulted. Therefore, there is a campaign to prevent and
denounce cases of assaults on mens. The media, as well as an important part of
society, have not internalized the fact that men also suffer from this type of violence.
What type of violence is that is used over men? Studies show that the main problem is
psychological, being classified as the worst of all, and that translates into insults,
indifference, disqualifications, etc. There are also some physical attacks such as, for

example, do not allow sexual relations, fight over money control, and other more serious
as combos and kicks.
As regards this point, it should be recorded that the allegations of violence against
men are scarce. The conventional wisdom is that men do not approach police to stamp
a complaint because they are afraid to receive jokes, so feel doubly assaulted.

To show the proposal, we would like to conclude by saying that this issue has seemed
relevant because it is the basis to make academics and researchers aware of this topic
and discover what is behind these behaviors, in what resemble or not the violence of
which women are the victims and, among other things, what to do to act in front of this
problematic. In Chile, which equal how happens to assaulted women, men in this
condition, feel violated and little welcomed, no answers. It is time that the State place a
step forward and also put emphasis on the violence that the men of our country receive
every day.

Conclusions

In this essay, we wanted to make clear how gender-based violence is something that does not only
affect women, but that it is also possible to see cases where are the men assaulted by their partners.
We have also shown the factors that make. This type of behavior become almost invisible in our
society, including the evil understood concept of masculinity, where men must adopt certain
behaviors and "ways of being" that they do not obscure, but to make clear their virility and strength.
Before this last one, is a major challenge which has our society to know address this issue properly.
Starting, it is necessary that we realize that, like other forms of violence, physical and verbal
aggression against the masculine gender must not be endorsed, but on the contrary, reported before
the appropriate authorities. In addition, must bear in mind that there are the legal tools and
institutions where they can and should be denounced these behaviors, without fear and without
shame by part of the attacked and its nearby.
Once filed this reality, prepare a project that seeks, precisely targeting two newly prominent issues.
That will require, on the one hand, the sponsorship and support from a relevant institution of the State
(in this case we have mentioned to the) Ministry of women and gender equality), and on the other, the
proper use of the means of communication, especially radio, to spread a campaign that is conducive
to the bases to meet this reality and deal with it.
The campaign that we have created has as main objective awareness with respect to prevent and
report all instances of violence against domestic the masculine gender. To achieve that purpose, you
must plan an educational campaign clear considering the public to which it is addressed and, above
all, the messages that will be issued to meet the main objective and the specific objectives of this
campaign. Without a doubt, the task will not be easy. There are barriers to entry that sort and they
say relationship with the form in society currently see violence against men, in often, as something
other than a delinquent Act or, at least, and anecdotal reprehensible socially. Drawn the first fence, it
should be clear that measures are they should be taken in these cases.
Then, and in conclusion, we believe possible to achieve designated goals, complying with the steps
in this trial and which are: 1. to describe and analyze a specific problem (the gender-based violence
against men), 2. Deliver a solution to this problem (the creation of a series of messages to the
population) and 3. Use one tool in particular to combat domestic violence against men (media in
particular radio).