The things a boy, especially a boy, needs to learn from his father — respect for women, the value of work and education, sobriety, dealing with anger and jock itch, etc. — are critical to his growth. And nothing does more good for a man than to teach those virtues to his children.
On this Fathers Day, 2015, nearly one out of four American fathers is not living with his children, and it’s not just in poorer communities. There are theories about why this is happening but one thing is sure, we’re all poorer for it.
The mere suggestion that fathers are optional is dangerous — our sons are listening. If our culture convinces our boys that they’ll be unnecessary as parents, they’ll meet that expectation. Our daughters won’t have partners to raise a family.
It’s convenient to use men as punching bags on this issue. Blame those XY chromosomes. Every man is a rolling stone. Really? That’s as offensive as saying women earn less than men because they don’t work as hard
Changes in family structures, education, employment and incarceration rates have kicked the feet out from under too many men. These are difficult times, especially for someone isolated from his children.
Today we honor our fathers — all of them. Bring on those hand-drawn Fathers Day cards, those beer mugs and those neckties with ducks, super heroes and sports cars silk-screened on them (the kind that only a father would wear).
