‘Promoting the physical, mental, emotional, and social health of men, and attitudes and behaviors that will benefit everyone.’
‘Violence’ is a broad term that means different things to different people. It can be used to describe a specific incident of violation by physical force or to describe an abusive or unjust exercise of power over a period of time. Perhaps the most insidious forms, familial and interpersonal violence, thrive on privacy and secrecy, happening behind closed doors. ‘Break the Cycle’ is an annual event that has been intentionally designed to serve as a bridge across the chasm between the individual and the community. Each participant is free to define ‘the Cycle’ for themselves, yet are able to do so in collaboration with other participants as a community.
Some may choose to participate in order to interrupt a familial legacy of violence while others may do so in order to protest collective acts of violence. Some may participate as a stage in their own personal recovery, while others may do so in order to promote the prevention of ‘bullying’ in our children’s schools. Each individual participant is encouraged to creatively utilize this event as a means of personal empowerment and healing while joining together with others to generate a collective statement about the kind of world in which we wish to live.
Our mission is to promote the mental, physical, emotional and social health of men, as well as attitudes and behaviors that will benefit everyone. With this goal in mind the ASUO Men’s Center will be hosting ’Break the Cycle 2009’. This is a unique event with several different components. It begins with a 5k run/walk/roll giving all participants an opportunity to demonstrate their position as individuals or as members of a group wishing to take a stand against domestic violence, abuse, and interpersonal violence. Participants will be actively encouraged to form a unity against violence and to promote positive relationships in our community. Following the 5k, the Men’s Center, along with various other campus and community groups, will host a finish area with food and music. Participants will be invited to gather and mingle with people from all different parts of the community. There will be a stage area with various speakers addressing a wide array of issues falling under the umbrella of ’violence’.
‘Break the Cycle’ was created for the UO Men’s Center and the entire community by Patrick Werhane, an athlete on the UO Track & Field Team and a senior in the Family & Human Services program.