EUGENE, Ore. -- (April 18, 2012) -- The University of Oregon Men’s Center will present its 5th annual Break the Cycle 5K run on April 22 to raise awareness of interpersonal violence and offer participants an opportunity to take a stand against domestic abuse.
“Since men are most often the perpetrators of interpersonal and sexual violence, we as men need to take responsibility in reducing this violence,” said John Phan, director of the UO Men’s Center. “We … are urging all men – students, staff, faculty, administrators and community members – to become involved in domestic and sexual violence prevention.”
The five-kilometer run will begin at 1 p.m. in the EMU Amphitheater, at East 13th Avenue and University Street. It is free and open to the public, but donations will be accepted to benefit WomenSpace, which provides domestic violence prevention services.
The Break the Cycle event will continue after the run, with speakers and a variety of prizes based on participation and placement in the race.
The event was conceived in 2008 by a student intern at the Men’s Center who was also a member of the UO cross country team. Sigma Pi fraternity became a cosponsor of the event three years ago, and the University Health Center’s Peer Health Education program and Healthy Oregon will also help as sponsors this year.
Phan said he’s hoping for about 100 runners, walkers, strollers and rollers in the race. Participants can register at the start of the race or throughFacebook.
“This year, we wanted to expand our invitation to include members outside of the UO campus community,” Phan said.
The UO Men’s Center, created in 2000, was the first center of its kind at a major university and has become a national leader in addressing the socialization process of college-aged men. Its goal is to reduce campus violence, conduct problems and sexism by encouraging healthy lifestyles and engaging men in dialogues.
About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is among the 108 institutions chosen from 4,633 U.S. universities for top-tier designation of "Very High Research Activity" in the 2010 Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The UO also is one of two Pacific Northwest members of the Association of American Universities.
MEDIA CONTACT:Joe Mosley, UO media relations, 541-346-3606, jmosley@uoregon.edu
SOURCE:John Phan, UO Men’s Center director, 714-599-0870,jphan@uoregon.edu; or Jon Davies, UO Men’s Center advisor, 541-206-8319, jadavies@uoregon.edu.
Note: The University of Oregon is equipped with an on-campus television studio with satellite uplink capacity, and a radio studio with an ISDN phone line for broadcast-quality radio interviews.