Kelvin Davis is asking us to #speakout against sexual violence

Kelvin Davis has been busy. Recently he helped to organise a march from West Auckland to Cape Reinga that began on Friday 29 May to raise awareness of sexual violence. The Massive: Men Against Sexual Violence walk is the first of its kind to be held in the country organised by men, and took 17 days and covered more than 400 kilometres beginning in West Auckland and ending at Cape Reinga.

We are also proud to announce that Kelvin has also become a White Ribbon Ambassador.

“One of my priorities coming in to Parliament was to stand up and say enough is enough over sexual violence,” says Kelvin Davis.

“It is with real pride that I have been asked to become a White Ribbon Ambassador and it is a responsibility I take seriously. I believe those of us who are committed to being loving and respectful men need to speak out loudly and clearly that we will not tolerate violence in any form, be it verbal, physical, emotional or sexual. The vast majority of men are good men;  we just need to make it known to our sons, brothers, fathers, uncles, cousins, nephews and mates who are violent, that their behaviour needs to change. Violent behaviour is a choice. With our collective determination we can turn the tide of violence against women, children – and other men, even if we have to do it one man at a time.

The #SpeakOut Men Against Sexual Violence (MASSIVE) Hikoi was a success. Our goal was to raise awareness about sexual violence and to encourage people to #SpeakOut. This was achieved through excellent media coverage, rallies in towns, visits to schools, visibility while on the road, support of Members of Parliament from across all political parties, calls to our 0800 MASSIVE helpline and regular social media updates.

We encouraged people to #SpeakOut if they were survivors, bystanders or are perpetrators. Survivors need to tell someone for support, bystanders need to intervene, and perpetrators need to get help before they commit harmful sexual behaviour. At its most basic level harmful sexual behaviour is a choice that perpetrators make and often the behaviour can be changed if addressed.

We are grateful to White Ribbon, Green Ribbon, The Redeemed Riders and numerous other supporters including Labour Leader Andrew Little, for their tautoko of us on the final day as we marched up to Cape Reinga.

The Hikoi has ended but the journey to end sexual violence continues. Although sexual violence is perpetrated by females and males against females and males, men make up the majority of offenders. The crucial voices missing from conversations about sexual violence are the voices of men. If we are part of the problem we need to be part of the solution. We are looking to other ways now to spread the #SpeakOut MASSIVE message across the country and to keep the issue in the public eye.

Kelvin Davis MP

All political parties have got behind the event and a help-line (0800 MASSIVE) is now available for anyone wanting to disclose issues around sexual violence.