Anti-domestic violence charity White Ribbon says Will Smith hitting Chris Rock in the face at the Academy Awards gives people an opportunity to think about healthy masculinity.
The assault, which shocked viewers and audience members alike, came after the comedian made a joke about Jada Pinkett-Smith's bald head, calling her 'G.I. Jane'.
The comedian and actor was referencing the 1997 film G.I. Jane in which actress Demi Moore shaved her head. Pinkett-Smith told Billboard in December she has been battling the autoimmune disorder alopecia, which can cause hair loss and balding.
After initially appearing to laugh along, Smith leapt from his seat, stormed on stage and slapped Rock across the face.
"Keep my wife's name out of your f**king mouth," Smith said as he returned to his seat from the stage.
A stunned Rock said "I'm going to", before continuing. Smith has since apologised, saying his "behaviour was unacceptable". The Academy Awards has also launched a formal review and held emergency talks overnight to discuss whether Smith should be stripped of his award following the attack.
White Ribbon manager Rob McCann says what was witnessed at the Oscars was "outdated male masculinity''.
"Those attitudes that Will Smith let rise to the surface in an unscripted moment are why we need a reset, not with Hollywood elite, but with men. Too often we are taught as boys that we should 'harden up', that we need to be 'tough', that 'boys don't cry' and too often we think the way to deal with issues is through anger and violence," he says.
"Those messages over time, and reinforced through media, help to put men in what we sometimes refer to as the 'man box'. That's the expectation that men must always appear dominant, tough and in charge. It's a limitation that's prescriptive and restrictive, where different behaviours are dismissed as being 'not manly'."
McCann says men often believe they need to appear tough and in control in front of other men, which stems from a fear that they'll be rejected if he doesn't fit in. He adds that being told to "man up" is to be reminded to get back into "the man box".
"We know that suppressing individual identities and diverse emotional responses is stressful. It's also unhealthy as men who limit themselves by having to appear as tough and uncompromising often avoid asking for help when they most need it," he says.
"Believing in the rigid rules of masculinity are 20 times more likely to predict committing violence than any other demographic factors such as ethnicity, age or income. Conversely, men who break out of The Man Box and choose their own masculine identity report that they're less stressed, more satisfied with life and have happier relationships."
McCann says that Smith's actions at the Oscars are a chance to think about healthy masculinity.
"Where we reject the unhelpful stereotypes and unspoken rules about what it is to be a boy or man and replace them with being kind, empathetic and finding peaceful resolutions to problems.
"Healthy masculinity is also about boys and men being confident in who they are without feeling pressure to be a certain type of boy/man. Boys and men can still be brave, and have muscles, be assertive, tough, love rugby, enjoy time with other men and boys, enjoy a 'pint' with the lads.
"But boys and men should also be free to express sad emotions, enjoy cooking, dancing, gardening and anything else that does not fit into gender stereotypes."
He says that treating everyone with respect and rejecting the need to use violence is what healthy masculinity is.
With one in three women in New Zealand assaulted by their partner or ex-partner in their lifetime, McCann says there's a need to take action now and changing behaviour is always possible.
"The sad reality is the outdated attitudes that help drive violence, whether it is men's violence towards other men or men's violence towards women, are ideas that need to be consigned to our past," he says.
"We need to create a 'call-in-culture' that speaks to the need for change and provides concrete steps for how we can create that change. The alternative is that once in a decade we will talk about this issue when the Hollywood elite behave badly, or worse, when the next fatality occurs that is driven by outdated masculinity."
