Breaking down toxic masculinity by Raising Gentle’men

Reporter Corey Lazar

Two men from the Naples Shelter for Abused Women and Children are on a mission to raise gentlemen by breaking down toxic masculinity.

Antonio Garza and Jordan Davenport travel from public schools to teach children about violence and how to avoid it.

The duo teamed up to show children how physical and verbal aggression, especially toward a spouse is not acceptable.

“We first start with positive because we do like to be positive, should come first. Then we work into what you’re not supposed to do with your hands,” said Garza. “It put in the situation that when someone hits, it hurts a person’s body, and it hurts a person’s feelings too. We give them multiple examples of a child looking like he just got hit and you look like he’s a little distressed.”

The two men also spearhead another initiative, the Raising Gentle’men Program. In this program, male students are specifically talked to and shown what a good male role model looks like.

“I think that breaks down everything for them at a young age where they can remember these things as they get older, so they don’t have to typically deal with issues like that going into middle school or high school. If they do come up with that issue, then they will be able to know how to handle it,” said Davenport.

The Naples Shelter describes the Raising Gentle’men Program as a way to “encourage boys and young men to replace stereotypical ideas of men as controlling, aggressive and gaining power through violence, with the truth that men can be gentle, compassionate and kind without risking their identities.”