MatrixMen fights for male victims of abuse
WOODMEAD – "It took me a long time to heal and that is why I started the organisation, to help other men heal and to let them know that they are not alone," says Pelders.
Founder of MatrixMen, Martin Pelders, spoke at the Global Action for Freedom Summit on September 29 in Woodmead on a social issue that people mostly avoid.
Pelders and his non-profit organisation fight for the rights of male victims of sexual abuse.
The summit was hosted by Hope to Heal Foundation and featured guest speakers who spoke on human rights violations.
“The organisation started about 10 years ago as a result of self-healing. I was a victim from the age of five to 19. When I started speaking about it, people genuinely thought I was crazy because firstly, you don’t talk about it and secondly, boys don’t get sexual abused.
“It took me a long time to heal and that is why I started the organisation, to help other men heal and to let them know that they are not alone,” said Pelders.
“One research project which we recently viewed stated that around 44% of all boys are sexually abused by the age of 18. All the services out there are purely for girls. It’s as if it’s worse for a girl to get sexually abused than it is for a boy, it’s not. The short and long term effects are the same. In fact, it is detrimental for male survivors because of the secrecy and toxic masculinity.”
