Then we get the question—what does feminism do for men? The answer: a whole hell of a lot.
–From Goddess Musings
*throwing some water on the men who just fainted*
By the mere (mere? ha!) questioning of gender roles in our society, we are not only freeing women up, we are also questioning and freeing men. Let’s just take a few things in life and compare to the 1950s era. Men were the bread-winner – Now they can share that with women, hell, they can stay home. Men weren’t the nurturers with the kids – Now daddies are free to snuggle up with their kids. Men’s roles in our lives have changed since my own father was a kid. Who takes the credit? Certainly not the feminists in most people’s minds.
But IMO, it is the feminists who should take credit for transforming society to a point where it is ok if you are fifteen and don’t want to play football. It is legal for a man to take time off when his son is born. That home economics is open to young men learning to cook himself a decent meal. Men now can win full custody of their children! This is because feminists fought for laws that are gender-blind. I don’t think the feminists got their thank you card, althou we do get hit with those so-called “fathers rights” ads on the expressways.
While society isn’t fully ready for stay-at-home-dads, the concept was nothing more than a punchline ten or twenty years ago. So while men’s roles aren’t transforming as fast as women’s are, don’t blame the feminists. Blame the people *cough* men *cough* in charge who frown at the thought of Bob taking a month to spend with a newborn. Policy changes that help mothers will benefit fathers, too. Many fathers are now forgoing paid work to stay home and raise their kids. And perhaps even more fathers (and mothers) would enjoy staying home longer and providing more meaningful care for their children if it was truly valued by society and economically feasible to do so. That would benefit everyone.
Who’s going to be out there fighting for this? Men? If so, join hands with your feminists sisters, don’t be afraid to carry that label. Feminism is about equality and equal opportunity. This feminist is more than happy to let the men carry the torch and join the fight.
