Parenting & Families
A key strategy in family policy today is to emphasize the need for “Responsible Fatherhood.” Though there are often components in Responsible Fatherhood programs that seek to develop father involvement in non-monetary ways, their primary purpose is to secure child support payments. This is evidenced by the fact that a father who does not pay child support will be subject to penalties and enforcement, while a mother who interferes with a father’s wish to fulfill his emotional responsibilities to his child is often able to do so with impunity.
A better strategy is to start with a concept of “Equitable Parenthood.” The Center for Men and Boys in Social Policy can help you and your staff understand the many ways our culture demeans, disregards and devalues fatherhood — and how we can restore fatherhood to the valuable economic and psychological resource cultures throughout history have needed it to be.
