“Real Men Don’t Hit Women!” Campaign

Domestic Violence is a major problem in the United States.  Most of the domestic violence victims police agencies speak with say that they had been assaulted many times in the past but they did not tell anybody. Victims often wait until they believe that their life is in danger before filing a police report.

Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women in the United States, more than muggings, rapes and auto accidents combined.

The Grapevine Police Department believes that one of the best ways to combat the problem is to make it socially unacceptable and for the abusers to feel that they are not “Real Men” if they assault women.  We not only want the abuser to feel that way, but we want their friends and families to feel it also so that they may relate their feelings back to the abuser.

The creator of the "Real Men Don’t Hit Women!" campaign is Sergeant Bob Murphy, who retired from the Grapevine Police Department in May of 2007.  Sgt. Murphy says he had long admired the “Don’t Mess With Texas” anti-littering campaign for its catchy slogan that everyone remembers and for the results of that campaign.

An idea for a poster campaign struck him one day in where he imagined a macho looking man saying “Real Men Don’t Hit Women!” as though he was speaking to and pointing at the abuser. He felt that the message was clear and one that might stick in the mind of those seeing it if the poster's message was powerful enough.

Sgt. Murphy developed 6 posters using different personnel of the City of Grapevine such as police officers, a fire fighter and street department foreman. Our Crime Prevention Officers then distributed the posters throughout Grapevine. We want the posters displayed in areas that are not only accessible to the public, but also in areas such as warehouses, break rooms, lobbies, restaurant kitchens, waiting rooms, work areas, schools, trucking companies, etc.  Everywhere that men will see them we want them displayed.

If you have any questions about the campaign or if you would like one or more of the posters to display, please contact Sgt. Todd Dearing at 817-410-3264.