Speaker: Christian Veske-McMahon
Registration: https://bit.ly/2NVXjwk
Abstract:

“I never used the r-word. Damn, you can’t rape men,” told me a man who had been sexually abused. These two sentences are telling, in many ways: they show the complexity that surrounds understandings about male victims of sexual abuse – from verbalising the trauma to cultural notions of masculinity.

Gender-based violence, including sexual violence, affects millions of women and men worldwide. It is only recently, following the #Metoo movement, that the issue of sexualized violence is getting wide media attention. Whilst proportionally sexual violence targeting women is higher, men also fall victim of sexual abuse.

Knowledge on men’s experiences of sexual trauma will shed light to the specificity of trauma experienced by men, social and gendered attitudes around sexual abuse and how men are dealing with it. In my presentation I will focus on the results of the interviews I conducted for my MA thesis on men’s narratives of sexual trauma.

Speaker's Biography:

Christian Veske is a graduate of sociology from Tallinn University in Estonia. His professional career has been strongly linked to issues related to gender equality and human rights, both nationally and internationally. From 2006-2012 he worked at the Estonian Ministry of Social Affairs, as a chief specialist on gender equality. Following the years in ministry, he has been working on gender issues at the international level.