Some coordinators from the AVP Men's Circle at UVic at Meegan.

Past men’s circles

The Men’s Circle was created by the Anti-Violence Project, and is accountable and in relation to them. Find out more.

2019

Wednesday, February 6th – B028, 6pm to 8pm

Bystander intervention, part 1 (tentative)

Wednesday, February 20th – B028, 6pm to 8pm

Bystander intervention, part 2 (tentative)

Wednesday, March 6th – B028, 6pm to 8pm

AVP Consent workshop 

Wednesday, March 20th – B028, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, April 3rd – B028, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, May 1 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, May 15 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, June 12 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, June 26 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, July 10 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, July 24 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, August 7 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, August 21 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, Sept 18 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

First Circle of the school year! (Intro, community aspirations, why we are here)

Wednesday, Oct 30 – B028, 6pm to 8pm

Mental health and masculinity

Wednesday, Nov 13 – B025, 6pm to 8:30pm

Supporting a Survivor with AVP facilitators

Wednesday, Nov 27 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Redefinition and reliance

Wednesday, Dec 11 – B025, 6pm to 8pm

Harm and healing

2018

Wednesday, September 12, UVic

B028, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, September 26, UVic

B028, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, October 10, UVic

B028, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, October 24, UVic

B028, 6pm to 8pm

Wednesday, December 7, UVic

B028, 6pm to 8pm

Summer 2018 think tank meetings!

We’ll be meeting up over the next few months, on Wednesdays, in the basement of the UVSS at UVic. The Men’s Circle is launching a summer think tank about toxic masculinity. Read more below. Our next circle will be on June 6th, B025, in the SUB basement, and then every two weeks after that:

  • June 6th SUB B025
  • June 20th SUB B025
  • July 4th SUB B025
  • July 18th SUB B017
  • August 1st SUB B025
  • August 15th SUB B025

Think tank (heart tank) project

The Men’s Circle is launching a summer think tank about toxic masculinity. It’s an experiment in building a model that helps us assess our own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to toxic behaviours, patterns, beliefs and ideologies. Part of the reason we are entering in this experiment is to (hopefully) lessen the work of women, trans and femme folk having to help us learn with toxic masculinity is. We’ll begin by brainstorming as many examples of toxic masculinity as possible. Once we have a giant list of varieties and instances, we’ll try to group them, or look for intuitive ways to categorize them. If we get that far, we’ll use the model to develop some sort of tool to help ourselves, and other men, examine or assess or reflect on our own inventory of toxic masculinity traits. So for example, maybe someone can use the tool to discover that even though they intellectually understand that gender is not a binary, they don’t do anything to challenge the gender binary in their daily life. Given the short timeline, and the complexity and fraughtness of the topic, it seems likely that we won’t get far. But the process will hopefully be illuminating and invigorating nonetheless.

Wednesday, April 4th, Heart Lab: Disposability, distancing and self-implication

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028.
Disposability, distancing and self-implication.

Wednesday, March 21st, Systems Lab: Disposability, distancing and self-implication

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028. Disposability, distancing and self-implication, with Billy and captain.

Wednesday, March 7th, Heart Lab: Caring for each other

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028.

Wednesday, February 7th, Heart Lab follow up on colonization and heteropatriarchy

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028. Last circle we watched a video on colonization [icon icon=”external-link”]. Next circle we’re going to talk more about this.

Wednesday, February 21st, Systems Lab: Caring for each other

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028. With captain.

Wednesday, January 10th, Heart Lab: Introductions

6:00pm to 8:00pm. Introductions & Heart Lab with Billy and Brydon.

Wednesday, January 24th, Systems Lab: Heteropatriarchy

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028. Heteropatriarchy, entitlement, the male gaze, and exploring how colonization shapes masculinities, with Brydon and captain.

2017

Wednesday, December 13th: Winter Solstice

6:00pm to 8:00pm. Come on out for the last Men’s Circle meeting of the year.

Wednesday, November 29th: Autumn line up

6:00pm to 8:00pm. Join us for an in-depth discussion about consent. We are going to dig deeper into topics that were brought up during the awesome consent workshop put on by AVP.

Wednesday, November 15th: Autumn line up

6:00pm to 8:00pm. Come participate in one of AVP’s amazing consent workshops. The AVP consent workshop is intended to provide folks with the education, skills, and opportunity to understand and practice consent in a supportive and sex positive space. See you there!

Wednesday, November 1st: Autumn line up

6:00pm to 8:00pm. We’ll be talking about masculinities. What is toxic masculinity? How is it produced and reproduced? What is our role in it? Come join us for this important discussion.

Wednesday, October 18th: Cancelled for Darnell Moore!

6:00pm to 8:00pm. We’re going to Darnell Moore so come find us over there.

Wednesday, October 4th: Fall meetup

6:00pm to 8:00pm. Come on over for meet and greet and figure out what we want to do all semester. Bring your feminist thinking cap.

Also, cool other events you can find us at

Leading up to October 4th, there are two amazing events happening. Some of us will be present at both events. So if you come out to either of these, and you don’t already know us, please look for us or ask around for us. We would be stoked to meet you.

Summer conversation topics in 2017, in the park

Wednesdays, Meegan (Beacon Hill Park)
by the Story Pole at Cook and Dallas Road
#23 on this map (PDF)

June 28th: Dating in the Park

6:00pm to 8:00pm, Meegan (Beacon Hill Park Story Pole), #23 on this map (PDF)

Summer dating, loving, as a pro/feminist dude – what’s that like? How do men [and masculine identifying folks] navigate intimate/romantic/sexual relationships while keeping up a feminist way in the world? Let’s chat about our experiences in dating, or not dating, and explore how this comes up in our lives.

May 31st: The Future of Masculinities in the Park

6:00pm to 8:00pm, Meegan (Beacon Hill Park Story Pole), #23 on this map (PDF)

We’re going to meet up and and talk gender, anti-violence and the future of masculinities. Consider this a science fiction session. What do you want from the future of masculinities? Is it utopian? What does it look like? We won’t be providing a meal, but please feel welcome to bring snacks or foods to share or to have by yourself. Join us!

May 31st: Interviews with AVP report writers in the Park

6:00pm to 8:00pm, Meegan (Beacon Hill Park Story Pole), #23 on this map (PDF)

We’re going to meet up and and make ourselves available to folks who are writing the Men’s Circle report. We’re looking forward to having some conversation, and enjoy a lightly facilitated evening in the park. We won’t be providing a meal, but please feel welcome to bring snack or food to share or to have by yourself. Join us!

May 17th: Relationship Intervention Seminar in the Park

6:00pm to 8:00pm, Meegan (Beacon Hill Park Story Pole), #23 on this map (PDF)

We’re going to meet up and discuss the challenges of hard, controversial, and political conversations with the people in our lives. What happens when your friend or family member says something misogynist? Transphobic? How do we respond? How do we maintain relationships that are warm, loving, meaningful while challenging and growing together? How do we alienate or dispose of people?

We’re looking forward to having some conversation, enjoy a lightly facilitated evening in the park. We won’t be providing a meal, but please feel welcome to bring snack or food to share or to have by yourself. Join us!

Wednesday, April 12th

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028 Student Union Building, Workshop: Support Workshop

This workshop provides some foundations for supporting survivors of sexualized violence. Throughout the workshop we will discuss different approaches and tools that can be used when supporting someone. Some topics include: active listening, believing survivors, caring for yourself, and making referrals. There will also be time to practice supporting folks through (optional) roleplays.

Wednesday, March 29th

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028 Student Union Building, Workshop: Emotional Labour

We’re going to have a facilitated discussion on emotional labour. What have we been taught as men and male identified people about how we behave and what we should want around emotions and emotional labour? What is it that we really want? Who does the work?

We’re really looking forward to this. Join us!

Wednesday, March 15th

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028 Student Union Building, Lab Time: vulnerability

We’re going to have a facilitated discussion on vulnerability. What have we been taught as men and male identified people about what we should want around vulnerability? What is it that we really want? Who does the work?

We’re really looking forward to this. Join us!

Wednesday, March 1st

6:00pm to 8:00pm, B028 Student Union Building, Sex & desire

We’re going to have a facilitated discussion on sex and desire. What have we been taught as men and male identified people about what we should want around sex? What is it that we really want? How does joy, entitlement, ability to talk openly about sex, and toxic masculinities inform our relationship to sex?

We’re really looking forward to this. Join us!

Wednesday, February 15th

6:00pm to 8:00pm: we’re going to have a facilitated, but less structured meeting with lots of time for discussion and small group work. Join us!

Wednesday, February 1st

Join us to share food and meet each other and do a consent workshop, covering topics such as:

  • consent: what it is, why it’s required, how to practice it,
  • gender-based violence,
  • safer spaces, sex positivity, power and privilege and more!

Wednesday, January 18

Join us to share food and meet each other and talk about:

  • Expectations for the group and each other
  • What you want to see happen
  • Masculinities, of course

2016

Wednesday, November 30th

6-8:30pm: Accountability Workshop
UVic Student Union Bldg, Room B028

How can gender privileged folks learn from our mistakes and do better? How can we be accountable and support one another to do the same? Join us for a workshop and discussion with some new ways of thinking about accountability and some embodied experiences of what it feels like.

Weds Oct 26, 2016, 6-8:30 pm

Our second meeting of the year is this coming week – sorry to those of you who rely on this email list to get notifications about our meetings, an email never went out! As usual, we will be meeting in SUB B028 at, and plan to go until about 8:30pm this week.

This week’s Men’s Circle will be a workshop on Bystander Intervention. Two rad Victoria based educators will facilitate this 2.5 hour workshop on how to positively intervene in violence and oppression. All men and masculine identified people are welcome and encouraged to attend (not just students! and not just folks who have been to a Circle before!).

This workshop is designed to support participants in exploring some of the ways that they can intervene when violence and oppression is being perpetuated in everyday life, in places where we live, work, and play, on and off campus. More specifically, we designed it with the following goals in mind:

  • Create a supportive environment where participants feel able to take risks and make mistakes.
  • Use facilitation tools that invite participants to actively practice (rather than just discuss) various interventions in harm.
  • Hold space to unpack what has gone well (and not so well) in terms of different strategies of intervention.
  • Work from people’s experiences to generate collective insights and tools to support resisting oppression, interrupting violence, and mutual support.
  • Encourage participants to come away with more curiosity, questions, and interest in bystander intervention.
  • Provide (very limited and brief) tools for supporting survivors of violence.

Weds Oct 5, 2016, 6-8pm, UVic Student Union Bldg, Room B028

And we’re back! October 5th 6-8 pm in room B028 (downstairs in the Student Union building) Join us for the first men’s circle of the semester Let’s ease into the term by getting reacquainted, meeting new folks, and discussing some foundational topics in men’s work – the gender binary, gender expectations and their harm, and considering ways we can encourage and care for each other and those folks in our lives.

This event is open to all man and masculine identified people (not just students!) so come and bring a friend or two! As always, snacks will be provided.

Weds Mar 30, 2016 6-8 pm UVic Student Union Bldg, Room B028

Topic: Film – School of Secrets

The Men’s Circle Coordinating Collective would like to acknowledge that the men’s circle takes place on W̱SÁNEĆ and Lekwungen traditional territory. As a group of settler men, we particularly want to name that heteropatriarchy has been a primary tool of colonization, through violence on the land and bodies of indigenous people, and the ongoing attempts to impose settler patriarchal masculinities on indigenous men. This leads us to the understanding that learning to practice an accountable and feminist masculinity must also grapple with the need to show up in solidarity with indigenous resurgence.

Details: For the final circle of the semester we will be watching a brief documentary, School of Secrets (40 minutes), on how UBC handled sexual assaults caused by Dmitry Mordvinov. The second half of the circle will be devoted to discussing the themes of the documentary. As always, snacks will be provided. Hope to see you there!

Weds Mar 16, 6-8 pm UVic Student Union Bldg, Room B028

Topic: Emotional Labour

Details: This week we are looking forward to a discussion about emotional labour in relation to hetero-patriarchy. We will begin by talking about what emotional labour is, and think through and name some of the gendered ways emotional labour happens in society. We will also brainstorm about how we, as men, can notice and learn to take a greater role in the emotional work of reproducing communities where people can flourish.

We will also zoom in on the practice of providing emotional support, consider how this practice of learning to be curious, responsive and present is a very important skill that can help us better support each other, ourselves, and the folks we care about, and talk with each other about times and places to be more emotionally supportive.

Weds Feb 3, 6-8 pm UVic Student Union Bldg, Room B028

As we approach the annual Stolen Sisters Memorial March (Feb 14th, meet at 11:00 AM at Our Place, 919 Pandora Ave), we felt it would be particularly appropriate to discuss settler colonialism as our topic for this week.

As indigenous feminists have long insisted, settler colonialism was, and is, a gendered process; it follows that undoing settler colonialism also requires initiative, work and accountability on the part of men.

What are steps we can take in that direction? Come and join the discussion. All men and masculine identified folks are welcome. None of us are experts on this topic and we welcome open-hearted participants.

We will have snacks, and if you have questions or concerns, please e-mail us at vicmenscircle [at] gmail [dot] com

FB: https://www.facebook.com/events/206590319694815/

2015

Weds Dec 2, 6-8 pm UVic Student Union Bldg, Room B028

Hi everyone,

Hope you’re all well.  We had two really great (complex, vulnerable, intense, caring) conversations about accountability over the last month.  For the next Circle, we’re going to be talking (vulnerably) about vulnerability!

As usual, we’ll meet on Wednesday (Dec 2nd) 6-8pm in the SUB in Room B028, and we’ll have some snacks.  This will be our final Circle of 2015 – hope to see you there!

We’re also planning an end-of-term social for the Men’s Circle and we want to invite Anti-Violence Project as well.  We don’t have a venue confirmed yet, but save the date: evening of December 9th.  We’ll send out more details soon!

Take care,
Nick