Beyond the Moustache: Why the Movember Movement Must Include Men with Disabilities

Every November, a sea of new moustaches sprouts on faces worldwide. What began as a conversation over a few beers in Melbourne has grown into a global movement, with Movember championing men’s health issues like prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health suicides. The iconic ‘Mo’ becomes a walking, talking billboard for breaking the silence.

But as we applaud this progress, we must ask a critical question: Is every man hearing the message? Is every man able to participate?

This Movember, we need to talk about a group often left on the sidelines: men with disabilities. And to understand the profound need for inclusion, we must look at the specific context of a country like Zimbabwe.

The Overlooked Reality: Men with Disabilities and Health

Men with disabilities face the same health risks as all men, often with added layers of complexity and neglect.

1. Physical Health: Screenings for prostate and testicular cancer can be fraught with barriers. Clinics may be physically inaccessible, examination tables not adjustable, and healthcare providers may lack the training to perform examinations on men with various physical disabilities. The assumption is often that their disability is their primary—or only—health concern, leading to late diagnoses and poorer outcomes.
2. Mental Health: The stigma, social isolation, and economic disempowerment faced by men with disabilities are profound mental health stressors. The pressure to conform to traditional masculine ideals of being a “provider” and “strong” can be devastating when compounded with societal perceptions of disability. This creates a dangerous cocktail of silence, shame, and suffering.
3. Sexual Health: Conversations about sexual health often exclude men with disabilities. They are frequently desexualized—viewed as either asexual or unable to have a sexually fulfilling life. This leads to a lack of tailored education about their specific needs and risks, further alienating them from essential health services.

The Zimbabwean Context: A Crucible of Challenge and Resilience

In Zimbabwe, these global issues are intensified by socioeconomic realities. Men with disabilities here navigate a landscape marked by:

• Cultural Stigma and Superstition: In many communities, disability is still misunderstood. It can be wrongly attributed to witchcraft, a curse, or past misdeeds. This deep-seated stigma can lead to isolation within their own families and communities, making it incredibly difficult to speak openly about health, let alone intimate issues like prostate pain or depression.
• Economic Hardship and Accessibility: Zimbabwe’s economic challenges mean public infrastructure is often severely lacking. For a man using a wheelchair, a journey to a clinic can be an impossible obstacle course of broken pavements, non-existent ramps, and unaffordable transport. Poverty means health is often a luxury, with preventative care like cancer screenings being the first expense to be cut.
• A Fragile Healthcare System: The public healthcare system, while staffed by dedicated professionals, is under-resourced. There is often no budget for accessible medical equipment or for specialized training for staff on how to care for patients with disabilities. The focus is on urgent, primary care, leaving little room for the nuanced conversations of men’s health.
• The “Strong Man” Paradigm: Traditional Shona and Ndebele cultures, among others, often emphasize masculine strength and stoicism (ushingi). For a man with a disability, admitting vulnerability by discussing mental health struggles or fears about cancer can feel like a betrayal of this cultural identity, compounding his sense of inadequacy.

Why Movember’s Mission is Incomplete Without Them

Ignoring men with disabilities isn’t just an oversight; it’s a failure of Movember’s core mission to stop men dying too young.

1. They are at Higher Risk: Due to the barriers to care, men with disabilities are more likely to experience late-stage cancer diagnoses and untreated mental health conditions. Including them is not a side project; it is central to saving lives.
2. They are Agents of Change, Not Passive Recipients: Men with disabilities in Zimbabwe are not waiting to be saved. They are organizers, advocates, and leaders within their own communities through organizations like the National Association of Societies for the Care of the Handicapped (NASCOH). Partnering with them leverages existing trust and expertise.
3. True Awareness is Inclusive Awareness: A movement that only represents able-bodied men presents an incomplete picture of manhood. True strength lies in vulnerability, resilience, and community—values that men with disabilities embody every day.

A Call to Action: How to Make Movember Truly Inclusive

So, what can be done? This isn’t about reinventing the wheel, but about building ramps.

• For Movember Global & Funders:
  • Fund Accessible Projects: Earmark grants for initiatives that specifically target men with disabilities or make existing projects physically and communicationally accessible.
  • Amplify Diverse Voices: Feature stories and images of men with disabilities in all campaign materials. Show them growing moustaches, participating in Movember runs (with adaptations), and sharing their health journeys.
  • Develop Inclusive Resources: Create health information in multiple formats: Braille, easy-read formats with pictures, and sign language videos.
• For NGOs and Health Providers in Zimbabwe:
  • Partner with DPOs: Disabled People’s Organizations (DPOs) are the experts. Collaborate with them to design and deliver men’s health outreach programs.
  • Train Healthcare Workers: Implement training to combat bias and teach practical skills for examining and communicating with men with various disabilities.
  • Community-Based Outreach: Take the clinics to the people. Hold men’s health talks in community halls, schools for the blind, and physical disability support groups, ensuring the venues are accessible.
• For All of Us:
  • Check Your Assumptions: Never assume a man’s health knowledge or sexual activity based on his disability.
  • Be an Active Ally: If you’re growing a Mo, use it as a conversation starter to talk about all men’s health. Ask questions, listen, and advocate for inclusivity in your local Movember events.

This Movember, let’s grow more than a moustache. Let’s grow our consciousness. Let’s ensure the conversation about men’s health is so loud, so clear, and so accessible that it reaches every man—including the resilient, often-invisible men with disabilities in Zimbabwe and beyond. Their health matters, their voices count, and their inclusion is what will make this movement truly unstoppable.