by Elizabeth Shé
"Music by men, for men." So go
the first words on the CD, Between the Beats. What's new? Most music is by men
for men, as are films, television, advertising – media, period. But this is
different. This CD is the brainchild of Todd Denny, The Evergreen State College
(TESC) grad '85, and part of the Men's Violence Prevention Music Project (MVP).
In the song "Fear Economy," MVP exhorts you to "raise your
glasses to the fear economy. War, professional sports and pornography. Timber,
television and the prison industry. Corporate music,alcohol and gasoline."
Eerily apt, in light of the events on September 11. Now, more than ever, boys
and men need non-violent role models. And Denny wants to provide them.
Denny also wants to make rape and domestic
violence a male issue. "For 30 years it's been a women's issue. That defies
common logic.We've got to stop de-gendering violence. It's not teen violence or
gang violence – it's male violence." Full of stats and facts, he reels
off that mostly boys and men, ages 14 to 29, are responsible for the majority of
violent acts in our society. Why, then, is this labeled a women's issue? He
doesn't wait around for an answer. Instead, he's crafted a program to reach
those 14- to 29-year-olds with music. Music not only soothes the savage beast,
it makes him change his behavior, or so Denny believes. MVP's musical messages
are simple, with good rappin' beats: treat women well, look out for other
humans, that woman in Playboy is somebody's mother,sister, or daughter, and
intervene if you see something dangerous about to happen.
Originally from Illinois, Denny credits
TESC faculty member David Whitener and the Native American Studies program with
pushing him in the right direction. "Work with your own people,"
advised Whitener back in 1982, also urging Denny to work with groups instead of
individuals. Today, Whitener says, "The philosophy of our program was to
encourage people to do what they do best. Todd obviously understood that. He's
adept at doing that."
Like many a Greener after him, Denny
interned at Safeplace, the rape relief and women's shelter in Olympia. "I
wouldn't be where I am today without Safeplace," Denny says. The position
initially called for basic childcare, but while he was there, Denny developed
activities to help children cope with abuse. When the mothers went off to
discuss domestic violence issues with Safeplace counselors, Denny spent the
time with the children – an hour of coping and expressing activities,
another hour playing "just for fun."
Denny went on to receive his master's
degree in social work from the University of Illinois, where he founded an
organization called Men Against Rape. As a U of I staff member, he designed and
facilitated curriculum for rape prevention programs. Entertainment Tonight
filmed the Denny-organized male protest against Playboy recruiters on campus,
and he was featured in the PBS documentary, "Date Rape: A Different Set of
Rules." Denny has been working in the violence prevention field for 17
years, offering interactive programs to schools and conferences. To date, he
has conducted more than 500 sexual assault and domestic violence education
workshops.His programs are endorsed by the National Coalition Against Domestic
Violence, Washington State Senator Lisa Brown and Safeplace.
Denny's mentor says the Greener is ahead of
his time. "He's on the cutting edge, using popular culture to educate
people about male violence. The hardest thing is to make people aware of their
socialization, especially teenagers. MVP is very effective," says Fred
Schrumf, student services coordinator for the Spokane Public School District.
Passionate about primary prevention, Denny
goes to the source of the violence problem – men. "I am not
anti-male. Some of my best friends are male," he jokes, then continues in
a more serious vein, "Our ideas of masculinity have to change. People are
desperate. The catalyst for me was all the school shootings. They were mostly
done by suburban white boys who had been bullied and harassed. We [MVP] offer
primary prevention, not secondary, not tertiary. We are all about creating new
opportunities and looking for new expectations."
Like rap. One day during one of his
anti-violence programs, Denny started rapping spontaneously. The kids joined in,
and afterwards, he heard them making up their own anti-violence raps. "That's
when I knew I was on to something."
That initial rap session led to a CD, but
Denny thought he sounded too white, too straight, too old. His fears were
affirmed by the evaluations he received, which suggested he "get rid of
the white guy." He realized if he wanted to do this right, he had to have
the right musicians. He heard about a rapper-poet-artist named C.A.U.T.I.O.N.
(Critical Association Under the Influence of No one), and a rappin' cowboy from
Montana named Sandman. Enter Terrance Turner (C.AU.T.I.O.N.) and Chris "Sandman"
Sand. They listened to Denny's spiel, liked his ideas, and hopped aboard the
Men's Violence Prevention Music Project. Add Adrian Martinez to the literal mix
(current Greener, musician and recording engineer), and boom, you've got
driving beats without hit-me-over-the-head messages. "We're close to
something great," Denny says. And when I find myself singing the lyrics to
"Fear Economy," I have to agree.
Poet and novelist Elizabeth Shé
'99 has been known to float poetry boats and hang interactive poetry
clotheslines. She's THE FOUNDER OF POETS FOR PEACE.
