From Slovakia to South Africa, MenCare partners celebrated Father’s Day in June with events, activities, contests and celebrations around the world.
Peru
The Red Peruana de Masculinidades, a MenCare Peru coordinator, held a photography competition from June 14 to July 4 to showcase “images of affectionate, active and equitable fathers.” The goal of the competition was to increase visibility around fatherhood beyond Father’s Day, and the winning photographs will be displayed in an exhibition in the Metropolitan Municipality of Lima’s cultural office. The photography competition is part of a greater fatherhood campaign that the Red Peruana de Masculinidades has organized in conjunction with the Metropolitan Municipality of Lima, which includes workshops for parents in June and July, urban murals depicting involved fathers and a forum and panel discussion around fatherhood.
Russia
Although Father’s Day is not an officially recognized holiday in Russia, many regions of the country organized events to celebrate. Dads in Moscow had a “Papa Fest,” while in St. Petersburg, other fathers held parades and get-togethers.
Organizers of the festivities believe that Father’s Day is primarily an opportunity to draw public attention to responsible fatherhood and fathers’ presence in lives of their children. MenCare Russia works on these issues year-round.
Slovakia
In Slovakia, fathers organized a variety of celebrations to commemorate Father’s Day. In Bratislava, dads attended a football match and a picnic, while Ružinov town and Breza village held municipal festivities to commemorate the holiday.
South Africa
Close to 100 men filled the maternity unit of the Michael Mapongwana Community Health Clinic in Khayelitsha (Cape Town, South Africa) on Friday, June 13th. The clinic staff declared it the first time so many men occupied the maternal unit at the same time, an exciting start as they try to get men more involved in parenting and maternal health.
Sonke Gender Justice and MOSAIC, who co-coordinate MenCare+ South Africa, which promotes male involvement in healthy and positive parenting, maternal and child health and equitable relationships, are working with the clinic to involve more men, and many of the men who were at the event are involved in MenCare+ fathers’ groups.
The event was an early Father’s Day celebration and speakers included MenCare+ leaders and representatives from the Department of Health, who said that Father’s Day celebrates fathers being positive and active members of their families.