Hundreds of men lead protest to urge other men to help reduce violence against women

BERN, Switzerland (AP) — Hundreds of men led a demonstration in the Swiss capital on Saturday to denounce misogyny and a plague of violence against women, insisting men need to take a bigger and more vocal role in fighting both.

The “Men against Violence against Women” rally outside parliament follows high and persistent concerns that expressions of misogyny are too present online among teenage boys and young men — and that other men need to build a stronger counter-narrative.

It comes as some influencers on the fringe of the right-wing “manosphere” were emboldened after President Donald Trump's presidential win in 2024 to justify and amplify misogynistic derision and threats online.

Academics and advocacy groups, for the first time, have tried to map the extent of the movement in Switzerland.

A survey released in June by the University of Zurich and mencare, an umbrella group of Swiss men's and fathers' organizations, found half of male respondents aged 18 to 24 had expressed concerns that “real men are increasingly marginalized in society" and had a “restrictive and dominance-based view of masculinity.”

The study pointed to the need for “a systematic and society-wide debate about ideals of masculinity that promote violence. The debate should start in schools.”

The Swiss government has been taking note: Justice Minister Beat Jans earlier this month attended a conference designed to raise awareness about the hazards of violent invective online against women.

In a speech on the issue on Nov. 2, Jans cited statistics that four-fifths of violent crimes were committed by men, and in cases of rape “it is as high as 99%.”

“It is not all men. But we must also admit: It is almost always men,” Jans said. “Violence by men does not begin with the first blow; it begins with a disparaging remark. We men all have a duty.”

In the movement, the idea is to open the eyes of young men who are caught up in the "manosphere" and the “patriarchy” more broadly.

“We men are part of the problem — the problem being violence against women and queer people,” said Christoph Gosteli, a 42-year-old social worker and co-organizer of the “Men against Violence against Women” demonstration with the group Maenner.

“That is why it is important for us to take a stand and say: We no longer want to be part of the problem; we want to be part of the solution,” he said.