Creative industry trio launch May8 to encourage men to take action against domestic violence

Three members of Australia’s creative community have joined forces to unveil May8, a new initiative that aims to close the gap between men’s awareness of domestic violence and their willingness to take action.

 

Founded by Paul Chappell (Founder, Brand+Story), Wade Kingsley (Founder, The Ideas Business) and Ben Lucas (Head of Marketing, Foremind), the trio say there’s an urgent need to get men off the sidelines and into action to address Australia’s domestic violence crisis.

The May8 initiative launches today, with support from Ideally which conducted research that uncovered 84% Australian men believe domestic violence against women and children to be one of the most important issues facing Australians.

However, 41% believe that men aren’t speaking up about the issue because they don’t know what to do, while 40% believe they don’t see it as their responsibility.

“Most men are horrified by domestic violence statistics but don’t know where to start in taking action,” says May8 co-founder Wade Kingsley. “We’re not experts in this space, we’re just three blokes who saw a gap that needed filling. May8 is about giving men practical ways to do something rather than nothing.”

The initiative was born from a moment of reflection in 2024, when the founders noticed a week of particularly shocking violence against women making headlines across Australia.

“That week forced us to ask ourselves, why aren’t we doing more? And if we’re not doing enough, chances are most men aren’t either,” said May8 co-founder Ben Lucas. “Talking with my partner about the family violence stories in the news, it became clear that I wasn’t comfortable bringing it up with my mates. That made me reflect on why that was. If I knew that it was an issue that men needed to do more to help solve, why wasn’t I comfortable talking about it with my mates?

“The evidence is clear, men don’t know where to start. And that’s what May8 is all about. Creating an opportunity to put the guard down and begin learning about this issue and how they can help without feeling threatened. May8 is about making it easy for men to take that first step,” added Lucas.

Working with an advisory group of experts in domestic violence prevention, May8 has developed a list of eight practical actions men can take:

1. Have a conversation with a mate. Find ways to bring up Family and Domestic Violence using conversation starters.

2. Share your participation in May8 on your social network and tag May8. Every post can encourage other men to do the same.

3. Let a woman in your life know you are actively supporting the cause. Sometimes just saying aloud that you are not just a bystander is worth her knowing.

4. Make a cash donation to organisations that need your help.

5. Read educational resources like Jess Hill’s Quarterly Essay “Losing it”

6. Donate an old mobile phone. Women fleeing domestic situations often have their phones tracked by perpetrators. DVSafePhone repurposes old phones for women in need.

7. Watch the videos from “The Line” campaign and share it with a younger male you know.

8. Donate a gift card to a Women’s Shelter. Many women need gift cards to buy essentials when a perpetrator controls their bank account.

“There’s a lot of great work being done by government and charity organisations on this issue year-round, and we’re hoping to complement that work by closing the gap between men’s awareness of the issue and their action to address it.

“This isn’t a women’s issue, at its core, it’s a men’s issue, and we want to use the skills we’ve developed over the course of our careers as communicators to help men take the first step towards better understanding the issue. The more engaged we are, the more active we’ll be in solving the problem,” said Chappell.

May8 has been developed with guidance from a diverse advisory group of domestic violence experts, including frontline workers from women’s shelters and financial abuse specialists.

For further information about May8, visit www.may8.org.

Pictured (L-R): Wade Kingsley (Founder, The Ideas Business); Paul Chappell (Founder, Brand+Story), and Ben Lucas (Head of Marketing, Foremind)

 

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