Backlash
Members of MenEngage Alliance have long been deeply aware of and concerned about the backlash against gender equality. The rise of so-called ‘Men’s Rights Activist’ groups in the past few decades was part of the motivation to establish shared principles and standards that firmly root our collective work in intersectional feminism and the advancement of women’s rights. We aim to stand as a counterforce to those who seek to draw men and boys in with misogynistic and harmful narratives.
While women, girls, and LGBTQIA+ individuals have seen increased rights over the past few decades, the surge in far-right, nationalist, white supremecist, and religious fundamentalist movements has led to significant rollbacks across the globe. In recent years, this alarming trend has accelerated and become a critical concern.
Backlash is now the prevailing context in which we operate. Fundamentally, this means that countering backlash has become central to all our efforts for the advancement of gender equality, human rights, and democracy. Strategically, this has meant prioritizing ‘shifting narratives’ as a primary goal for our collective external impact in the coming years.
Building partnerships on men, masculinities and countering backlash
MenEngage Alliance convenes the Men, Masculinities, and Countering Backlash Collective. The collective meets regularly to explore the connections, share insights, build knowledge and evidence, and take joint action and stand in solidarity in the face of the rising patriarchal anti-rights backlash. It is a space to jointly strategise on strengthening partnerships and collective mobilisation against the rising patriarchal and anti-rights backlash against gender equality and social justice spreading worldwide.
In September 2025, the collective published the resource, 10 Ways to Engage Men & Boys to Counter Backlash, which the group launched at a Side Event of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.