International Men’s Day – Adjournment Debate Speech
Believe it or not, I rise with some degree of enthusiasm, notwithstanding the fact that it has been a long week. I recognise the time; I do not intend to keep members for too long. I thought it would be remiss of me not to take the opportunity to speak given that it is International Men’s Day. Mr President, you may recall that in an earlier speech I made in this place I noted that we have a Minister for Child Protection and a Minister for Women’s Interests yet no minister looking after men’s interests. I take this opportunity this afternoon to speak about International Men’s Day.This day that was designed to:
This is an occasion to celebrate men’s achievements and contributions, in particular their contributions to community, family, marriage and child care.
- focus on men’s and boy’s health issues,
- improve gender relations,
- promote gender equality, and
- highlight positive male role models.
Obviously I have only a limited amount of time to speak, so I will limit my comments to the final two areas—promotion of gender equality and highlighting positive male role models.
Firstly, it should be obvious that men and women are innately different. There is a push by some to erase gender distinctions
Professor Steven Goldberg, Chairman of the Department of Sociology at City College of New York, has written a book with the provocative title, Why Men Rule-A Theory of Male Dominance.
In the book, he “debunks much of the feminist mythology surrounding the issue of differences between males and females.
Goldberg maintains that although males and females are different in their genetic and hormonally-driven behavior, this does not mean that one sex is superior or inferior to another”. Each gender has different strengths and weaknesses.
Goldberg writes:
“There is not, nor has there ever been, any society that even remotely failed to associate authority and leadership in suprafamilial areas with the male. There are no borderline cases.”
“…if socialization alone explains why societies are patriarchal, there should be any number of societies in which leadership and authority are associated with women, and one should not have to invoke examples of non-patriarchal societies that exist only in myth and literature.”
Rather than competing for superiority, we should celebrate and embrace the differences between males and females.
Let us respect our differences and teach our future generations that each gender has intrinsic worth, importance and usefulness. This way we ensure that women and men will experience equality in their responsibilities, careers, family time and opportunities.
Our sportsmen are often tagged by the media as “significant male role models”. Whilst this may be true to some degree, I don’t think we should give, particularly the bad examples of drug taking, female abusing sports heroes – the honour of having an influence on our children. There will never be a more important role model in a child’s life than his or her father.
Let me spend some time today, telling you about some of the interesting research that has come across my desk in recent months and considering that today celebrates International Men’s Day – seems like a good time to bring them to your attention. Being a father of five, my eye is naturally drawn to the research that pertains to fatherhood:
In 2007 Jessica Ball released a research paper for the Public Health Agency of Canada showing that involved dads results in their children’s following positive health outcomes, these included
- enhanced self confidence
- fewer accidental and premature deaths
- less substance abuse
- less distress
- greater wellbeing
- marital stability/happiness
- less hospital submissions.
Closer to home a Daily Telegraph article on 18 August 2008tells a striking story of how:
“University of Newcastle academics have found children copy their father’s diets and exercise regimes – and will now trial a world-first study – Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids – funded by the Hunter Medical Research Institute.
The six-month study follows evidence that children mimic their fathers over their mothers when it comes to healthy eating and exercise.
Associate Professor Philip Morgan, who heads the new program, saw astounding results in a previous trial involving 165 overweight children.
He found children who lost the most weight had fathers who were engaged in the new eating and exercise plan.
“Fathers influence the food and physical activity habits in the home through their behaviours, attitudes and approach to food and eating, and act as a role model to their children.”
Professor Morgan said mothers, as primary care givers, were easier to inform but when fathers make changes the whole family becomes healthier.
Just last Tuesday; there was a very interesting article in the Courier Mail quoting Dr Bruce Robinson, coordinator of the Fathering Project at the University of Western Australia.
“In general, Mothers spend more time worrying about the kids – Have you got clean knickers, have you eaten your vegetables? Have you brushed your teeth? – whereas Dad’s tend to be a bit more laid back”. Robinson says.
As Dr Robinson states:
“ Those differences are good, so long as they are two good parts of one thing”
DIANE A. SEARS is the author of a book on Fatherhood and Men’s Issues – IN SEARCH OF FATHERHOOD — TRANSCENDING BOUNDARIES. She sums up beautifully when she writes:
“Our sons need Fathers. Men help the young males of our society successfully navigate the journey from childhood to manhood. It takes a man to teach a boy how to be a man. It takes a Man to provide our sons with the positive affirmation that only a Father can give –positive affirmation that our sons so desperately seek and need to receive from an adult male. It takes a Man to prepare the young males of our society for their future roles as husbands, fathers, and productive members of our global village once they reach the age of maturity. A young man’s relationship with his father determines, to a large degree, how he will raise his own children.
Our daughters need Fathers. Fathers shape our daughters’ first images of men. Fathers shape the decisions that our daughters make when choosing a career and choosing a mate. Fathers shape our daughters perception of their self-worth and their place in the world. It takes a Man to provide our daughters with the positive affirmation that only a Father can give – positive affirmation that our daughters so desperately seek and need to receive from an adult male. A young woman’s relationship with her father determines, to a large degree, how she will raise her own children.
Men are the glue that holds our families, our communities, and our world together.”
In researching content for this speech, I have found numerous studies and research by Child development laboratories and Universities the world over that all say the same thing.
Involvement of dad’s in their children’s upbringing and lives is very powerful and I would go as far as to say would certainly go a long way to solving many of our society’s problems and issues that manifest themselves in anti social or dangerous risk taking behaviour.
Problems and Issues that we spend so much time trying to legislate for with a view to minimising.
If something is so good for our children and has the potential to reduce obesity, mental health issues, future marital breakdown, drug use and has the power to help our children reach their potential and feel good about themsleves – shouldn’t we be doing what we can to help, nurture and support dad’s and encourage them to have as much involvement in the rearing and lives of their children as possible?
As we celebrate International Men’s day today, let us not forget the issue of interdependence that I have spoken of before:
If men are trained and supported to be real men: to uphold women as equals in the home and the workplace. If men are trained and supported to be real fathers: to uphold their children with all of the benefits I have just mentioned. Then surely the outcome will be better for women and children and for society as a whole.
