Reunion Online

Today, Emiliano Diaz de Leon discusses cultural gender norms, their negative correlation to sexual violence and the challenges they impose on males surviving childhood sexual abuse. In response, de Leon explores the power of choice, positive masculinity and the joy of redefining “machismo” for his own family. He says, "Every man is responsible for painting his own picture of what kind of man he wants to be, and if enough men paint with respect and real courage, then perhaps, “machismo” will come to include a grand masterpiece of tolerance and nonviolence that encourages men to freely show their vulnerabilities and to begin to heal."

I remember the interview like it was yesterday. The year was 1984, and I was a oh-so-young, oh-so-green social work student conducting an interview with a veteran gay activist at our local GLBTQ center. (Mind you, many of those letters weren’t spoken of back then). I was 24 years-old, straight-define, and I literally quivered with nervousness at being, for the first time in my life, in queer-defined space. My purpose of the meeting—to research the history and advocacy of the centre for my studies in community development—belied my internal emotional state.