abandofbrothers in partnership with RAH! (Research in Arts and Humanities) at Manchester Met

Date: Thursday 20th June 2019

Time: 7pm - 9pm (Film starts 7pm, Q&A from 8pm - 9pm)

Location: 70 Oxford St, Manchester Met

Tickets: Free - Available on Eventbrite

Stories about the misfiring of masculinity are everywhere. Stabbings on the streets of Manchester. 84 men a week taking their own lives. Addiction to drugs, alcohol, gambling, sex and pornography. Record numbers imprisoned. It's a grim picture.

abandofbrothers exists to promote a different model of masculinity and we have hopes for a different world - one where every man and boy leads a life full of meaning, purpose and connection.

We provide potent and dramatic Rites of Passage experiences to enable men to resolve difficulties and to move towards their greatest potential.

We would love for you to join us for an evenign exploring what modern masculinity might be and how both men and women would benefit.

This film screening will be followed by a Q&A session with representatives of abandofbrothers and discussion around how to increase and strengthen the work that abandofbrothers is doing in and around Manchester.

Rob Ralphs will be taking part in the Q&A:

Rob Ralphs is a Reader in Criminology, the Deputy Director of RCASS (Research Centre for Applied Social Sciences) and Co-convenor of SUAB (Substance Use and Addictive Behaviours) research group. His research expertise spans violent gangs, drug markets and substance use. Rob’s gang focused research has included one of the largest studies of gangs in the UK, the three Economic and Social Research Council funded ‘Youth Gangs in an English City: Social Exclusion, Drugs and Violence’ through to local needs assessments, exploring parents of ‘gang’ members support needs and evaluations of gang interventions (e.g. mentoring projects). He is widely regarded as one of the most knowledgeable and experienced UK academics in the field of gang research and has built up an international reputation. He is a member of the Eurogang Network and has presented his research in Argentina, Australia, Denmark, Germany, Norway, Spain and Sweden and published findings in a number of key US, European and UK publications including The British Journal of Criminology, The Handbook of Gangs; The Modern Gang Research and Youth Gangs in International Perspective.

Rob’s research on substance use dates back to the late 1990s when he was involved in several school-based surveys focusing on alcohol and drug prevalence, through to surveys of drugs and clubbing and a range of qualitative studies involving heroin and crack cocaine users. He has a keen interest in drug policy, for example, his co-authored book (with Seddon and Williams), Tough Choices: Risk, Security and the Criminalization of Drug Policy examines the transformation of recent drug policy, the growing emphasis on links with crime and the integration of drug treatment within the criminal justice system.

More recently, his research has focused on emerging drug trends, in particular new psychoactive substance (NPS) use and performance and image enhancing drugs (PIEDs). This has included the largest insitu study of clubbers (2,139 surveys), seminal research in the prison estate exploring prison NPS markets and prevalence and the subsequent impact on prisoners, staff and the prison regime. He has recently conducted research funded by Manchester City Council’s Community Safety Board on NPS prevalence and markets that is specifically focused on synthetic cannabinoid use amongst the homeless and ‘chemsex’ (men who have sex with men and engage in the use of crystal meth, mephedrone and GBL/GHB) and responding to drug related litter and developing needle and syringe provision.

Thanks to ongoing work, No. 70 spaces are considered accessible to visitors with additional access requirements once again. Please contact lucy.simpson@mmu.ac.uk or ring 0161 247 6740 if you have any additional access requirements and would like any more information.