Wednesday: MACHO, fruit

I spent Wednesday morning in the second floor of Inppares learning about the MACHO project. This is an amazingly well-organized project for men and boys, with the ultimate goal of getting males the access they need to health and counseling services at Inppares. But it's so much more than that. Gian Franco taught me all about it because I am interested in working with them.

The project has two phases, and the first phase, 2006-2009, included creating a network of partnerships around Lima and the surrounding suburbs, to analyze obstacles preventing men from accessing health services. Now, this is a huge issue because you can't just change gender norms overnight, and plenty of men in machista societies think they should just tough it out when they're sick, don't need to go to the doctor for checkups, let the woman worry about birth control, etc. While this is not necessarily the norm in Peru, it's a way of thinking that hurts men even in the US and especially in Latin America.

Another aspect of MACHO is a study consisting of hundreds of interviews with men in Lima to find a generalized consensus of what men think about sex, pleasure, responsibilities, homosexuality, double-standards, machismo, parenting, pregnancies, affairs, what it means to be a man, what it means to be a woman, etc, etc, etc, etc. This resulted in a book which was given to me yesterday, and I read nearly the whole thing (in Spanish) because it was so fascinating. To produce a study like this is huge accomplishment for any project.

Yet another aspect of MACHO is a series of health outreach events in prisons, schools, churches, meeting halls to provide free and convenient health services to men: HIV rapid tests, prostate health information and exams, psychology and psychiatry, family planning info, etc. I saw some pictures from the poorer suburbs of Lima, places where men really need access to care.

MACHO also offers monthly presentations in schools to discuss masculinity, gender, and gender-based violence with males. This is some of the most important work I can imagine in the advancement of any society, but especially in Latin America. It is believed that traditional masculinity holds men back in life, stunts their emotional growth, causes emotional and health problems later in life, and hurts women and gays too.

Another aspect of MACHO is creating places for men to express themselves and be active in the community. MACHO holds events honoring The Day of No Violence Against Women, Fathers' Day, a mock gay wedding, weekly meetings, etc etc

Inppares works with MACHO by analyzing, updating, improving, and widely publicizing their men's health services so that when men do interact with MACHO, they can come in to Inppares, get the health and emotional care they need, and be happy men. MACHO makes sure to get ads and articles in the local newspapers and magazines, interviews on the radio stations commonly listened to by men, and memorable posters up around town.

One of the best parts of learning about MACHO was when Gian Franco showed me the logic framework for the project. It was basically a spreadsheet document, but absolutely identical to the frameworks I was taught in my Health Education and Behavior class at the UNC School of Public Health. It has objectives, methods, outcomes/results, assessments, and other elements depending on necessity. I remember being frustrated at the step-by-step, very specific details needed to make one of these frameworks, but it is so necessary to have a multi-faceted, effective, well-planned project like MACHO. (Also, for anyone who wants to know, if you are about to embark on a huge project and need funding, a beautifully laid-out logic framework will land you some donors! And MACHO gets their money from the International Planned Parenthood Federation.)

In case anyone is wondering, one of the main reasons I came to Peru and to Inppares was to learn about their program in masculinity (MACHO) and get involved in it. So maybe you can imagine my excitement. I'm exhausted typing this right now, so I hope I have conveyed just how important men's health is when it comes to a healthy society. Traditional masculinity and related rigid social/sexual rules are no one person's "fault", but they are a big factor in shorter lifespans for men, emotional repression and distress for men, violence against women and LGBTQ people, lack of family planning, and a host of other problems. Men aren't the problem; they are the solution. Traditional masculinity is the problem, but you can't order men to change their lifestyles just because you think it would be better for them and everyone else. You have to show them how and why change could lead to a happier lifestyle, and it has to be done very delicately. It has to reach a whole society without damaging their cultural values. Public health to the rescue? I believe so! On Saturday morning I'll be attending a meeting of the Peruvian network on masculinities, a web of collaborating organizations that MACHO helped to unite and mobilize for the betterment of men's health everywhere. :)

So this isn't quite as cool as the MACHO project, but for lunch I finally got to eat Papa John's pizza with my coworkers. Although this is my favorite pizza in the world, I was still surprised to find out last week that I am missing some American products and parts of my life back home (other than people, which I expect to miss a little bit). When I went to Japan, I seriously wanted to get away from anything American and was disappointed when I encountered McDonalds or known TV shows. But now I feel a little nostalgia and some excitement when I see something I recognize. Definitely a new development. That Papa John's garlic sauce sure does hit the spot.

At dinner time I went with Renzo to the marketplace and we saw a bunch of old people dancing cumbia, marinero, and merengue. He said it was an event put on for all the elderly people in the area, and that people who live like this will die happy. :) It was really beautiful. I also got to pet some puppy dogs.

I walked to the fruit store and bought a pacae, a long seedpod with delicious fuzzy fruit inside. It was less than a dollar. This is what the inside looks like. Kind of looks like a banana, but the texture is more like juicy cotton candy.

And this is the outside of a pacae when I'm playing around with it. This fruit is from the jungle! I also bought a platano, which is like a thicker, starchier version of a banana. They can be easily bought in the US at any Hispanic grocery store. Renzo, Susy, and I had some fun taking pictures.

I like to fry platanos and put sugar on them. I should have gotten one that was brown/black on the outside because those are very mature and excellent for frying, no extra sugar needed. But this was good too...

Two of my host siblings, Susy and Renzo. :)

Happy to be in Peru.