An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Voices of Men

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Joshua Chapman
  • 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. --  Educational comedian Ben Atherton-Zeman visited Fairchild Thursday to deliver an important message to Airmen.

The message consisted of several topics focused on sexually based offenses and sexism, and was chiefly directed toward military members ages twenty-five and younger. 

Through the use of humorous dialogue and celebrity impersonation, Mr. Atherton-Zeman educated audiences on the destructive nature that negative behaviors--such as sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking and female objectification--have on individuals and communities.

Throughout the performance Mr. Atherton-Zeman introduced these sensitive topics in characters that are viewed notoriously as womanizers, in a way that reduces the potential defensiveness of male audience members. He performed as Rocky Balboa, James Bond and Austin Powers in a solo performance titled "Voices of Men."

In the role of Rocky Balboa, Mr. Atherton-Zeman portrayed a penitent man struggling to understand why his girlfriend, Adrian, left him.

"I don't blame her for leaving me...I cared more about scoring than respecting what she wanted," he said. "I wish I would have listened when she said no."

Mr. Atherton-Zeman further expressed the indecency of female objectification and domestic violence through the characters James Bond and Austin Powers, each character stressing a slightly different message on the proper treatment of women.

Between each characterization in the performance Mr. Atherton-Zeman used audiovisual aides to deliver his message with greater impact. Mixtures of commercial, movie and domestic violence clips were used in conjunction with his portrayals to help the audience better understand what's widely considered inappropriate conduct toward women.

Audience members reacted positively to the experience. Senior Airman Eunique Stevens, 92nd ARW Public Affairs still photographer, said, "It was a good experience...it was both laughable and relevant, and I think that both men and women had a lot to learn from it."

Concluding his performance, Mr. Atherton-Zeman directed female audience members "not to stand for violence or coercive behavior by men." He invited male audience goers to stand up and take an oath aloud.

The oath read, "I pledge to never commit, condone, or remain silent about men's violence against women. I choose to respect, listen to and seek equality with every person I date, and every person I know."

At that time every man in the audience stood and delivered the oath together in harmony.