- ManKind Project
-
Mankind Project 
Founder(s) Rich Tosi[1],
Bill Kauth[2]
Ron HeringType 501(c)(3) Founded 1984, Wisconsin, United States Location Illinois, United States[3] Focus Men's movement Revenue $1,938,132 for 2006[4] Volunteers >1000 Employees 5 Motto Changing the world, one man at a time. Website http://mankindproject.org/ ManKind Project (MKP) is a non-profit, educational organization, with the stated purpose to "support men in leading meaningful lives of integrity, accountability, responsibility, and emotional intelligence."[5]
MKP serves as the umbrella organization for 43 interdependent centers in eight countries (in four continents).[6] Each center elects its own leadership, and conducts trainings that address men's life issues.
As of September 2010[update], MKP reports that over 43,000 men have participated in their flagship program, the New Warrior Training Adventure.[7]
Contents
History
MKP has its origins in the mythopoetic men's movement of the early 1980s, drawing heavily on the works of Robert Bly, Robert L. Moore, and Douglas Gillette. In 1984, Rich Tosi, a former Marine Corps officer; Bill Kauth, a social worker, therapist, and author; and Ron Hering, Ph.D. (Curriculum Studies), a university professor; created an experiential weekend for men called The New Warrior Training. As the popularity of the training grew, they formed a New Warrior Network organization which would later become The Mankind Project.[2][8]
New Warrior Training Adventure
MKP states:
The New Warrior Training Adventure is a weekend process of initiation and self-examination that is designed to catalyze the development of a healthy and mature masculine self. It is The Hero's Journey of classical literature and myth adapted to our modern culture.[9]The weekend is intended as a male initiation ritual. MKP states that those who undertake this journey pass through three phases characteristic to virtually all historic forms of male initiation: descent, ordeal and return.[citation needed] Participants surrender all electronic devices (cell phones, watches, laptops, etc.), weapons (guns, knives, etc.) and jewelry for the weekend. This was explained as way of removing the "noise of a man's life", separating the man "from what he is comfortable with,"[10] and ensuring the safety of all participants. "read more ..."
Participants agree to confidentiality of the NWTA processes, to create an experience "uncluttered by expectation" for the next man and to protect the privacy of all participants. MKP encourages participants to freely discuss what they learned about themselves with anyone.
Trainings usually involve 20 to 32 participants, and some 30 to 45 staff. The average cost of the weekend course is $650.[11] The course usually takes place at a retreat center, over a 48-hour period, with a one-to-one ratio of staff to participants.[10]
Integration Groups (I-Groups)
MKP co-founder Bill Kauth's 1992 book A Circle of Men: The Original Manual for Men's Support Groups details how groups of men can assemble to help one another emotionally and psychologically.[12] Men who have completed the NWTA are encouraged to consider joining such a group. An optional "Integration Group" training is offered shortly after each NWTA; a small fee ($100–$150) is charged for training expenses. Scholarships are available for both the weekend and I-Group.[11]
The "I-Group" is for participants to engage in ongoing personal work and to apply the principles learned on the NWTA to their lives. I-Groups are available to all men who complete the NWTA, and sometimes to men who want to explore the Mankind Project. Many I-Groups meet one evening per week. A typical I-Group meeting includes conversation and sharing in a series of "rounds" that allow each man to be heard.[13]
Other trainings
MKP is affiliated with several similar training programs :
- Boys to Men [1], for adolescent boys[7]
- Inner King [2], for "initiating men into sovereign, kingly energy"[2]
- Inside Circle[3], for convict s in maximum security prisons[14]
- Inward Journey [4] (aka "AAFANTE"), a more emotionally charged training for people of African accent.
- Vets Journey Home [5] (formerly "Bamboo Bridge"), for combat zone veterans[7]
- Warrior Monk [6], for "men and women who are in a transition phase of life"[2]
- Woman Within [7], for women [7]
Criticism
Some former MKP members have written negative material about MKP on public blogs and chat lists.[15]
Anti-cult advocate Rick Ross of the Rick A. Ross Institute was quoted as saying that The ManKind Project appears to use coercive mind-control tactics. These include limiting participants' sleep and diet, cutting them off from the outside world, forcing members to keep secrets, and using intimidation.[15]
On August 31, 2010, a wrongful termination/retaliation lawsuit was reportedly filed against a law firm for allegedly retaliating against an employee who refused to attend the "New Warrior Training Seminar" offered by The Mankind Project (MKP). MKP was not named in the lawsuit.[16]
Wrongful death lawsuit
A 2007 wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of a Texas man charged that MKP was responsible for Michael Scinto's suicide.[15] The parents claimed that he had struggled with alcohol and cocaine addiction in the past. Scinto was a 29 year old adult who had been clean and sober for a year and a half prior to his attending MKP's New Warrior Training Adventure in July 2005. Two days after Scinto returned from the NWTA retreat, he sought psychiatric help at Ben Taub Hospital. He subsequently began drinking and taking drugs again, and he then committed suicide.[15] MKP agreed to settle the case on June 4, 2008. The terms of the settlement are not disclosed.[citation needed]
Notes
- ^ "About the Presenters". www.tosi.biz. Tosi and Associates. http://www.tosi.biz/aboutPresenters.php. Retrieved 2008-04-25. "In 1985, Rich co-founded the ManKind Project..."
- ^ a b c d Baer, Reid (May 2006). "May interview with Bill Kauth". A Man Overboard. MenStuff: The National Men's Resource. http://www.menstuff.org/columns/overboard/kauth.html. Retrieved 2008-04-25. "Bill Kauth is a co-founder of the New Warrior Training Adventure of the ManKind Project..."
- ^ Illinois Secretary of State; search for "Mankind Project"
- ^ "Mankind Project Group Return". JustGive.org. GuideStar. http://www.guidestar.org/pqShowGsReport.do?partner=justgive&npoId=100775067. Retrieved 2008-04-24.
- ^ "The ManKind Project of Chicago". www.mkpchicago.org. The ManKind Project of Chicago. http://www.mkpchicago.org/mkp/index.php. Retrieved 2008-10-20..
- ^ "Map of MKP Centers". The ManKind Project. http://mankindproject.org/communities/list. Retrieved 2010-12-15.
- ^ a b c d "www.mankindproject.org". www.mankinkproject.org. Mankind Project. http://www.mankindproject.org/. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
- ^ "Interview with Bill Kauth". www.menweb.org. M.E.N. Magazine. http://www.menweb.org/kauthiv.htm. Retrieved 2008-11-02.
- ^ "The Training Weekend". www.mkpchicago.org. The ManKind Project of Chicago. http://www.mkpchicago.org/mkp/nwta.php. Retrieved 2008-10-25.
- ^ a b Barry, Chris (2003-10-23). "Male transformer: Mankind Project uses mysterious rituals to help heal wounded men". Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Montreal Mirror. http://www.montrealmirror.com/ARCHIVES/2003/102303/people.html. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
- ^ a b "Frequently Asked Questions about the New Warrior Training Adventure". www.mkp.org. Mankind Project. Archived from the original on 2008-04-01. http://web.archive.org/web/20080401090314/http://www.mkp.org/training.htm. Retrieved 2008-04-24.
- ^ Kauth, Bill. A Circle of Men: The Original Manual for Men's Support Groups. New York: St. Martin’s Press. ISBN 0312072473. OCLC 24871074.
- ^ Jackman, Michael (2006-11-29). "Band of brothers: The men's movement (still) want guys to open their hearts". Metro Times (Scranton, Pennsylvania: Times-Shamrock Communications). http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=9913. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
- ^ "Missions of Service". www.mkp.org. Mankind Project. Archived from the original on 2008-04-01. http://web.archive.org/web/20080401085309/http://www.mkp.org/missions.htm. Retrieved 2008-04-24.
- ^ a b c d Vogel, Chris (2007-10-04). "Naked Men: The ManKind Project and Michael Scinto.". Houston Press (Village Voice Media). http://www.houstonpress.com/2007-10-04/news/weekend-warriors/full. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
- ^ http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-21/naked-men-get-in-touch-with-what-matters-most-commentary-by-susan-antilla.html
External links
Categories:- Men's movement
- Men's movement in the United States
- Organizations established in 1984
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