Men

There can be no discussion of women’s issues without reference to the role which men play in women’s lives – it is in comparison with men that women judge their equality and women’s lives are shared with men in work, friendship and home environments.

Men are as important as women in the lives of their children and should be encouraged and enabled as much as possible to play an active role, including after relationship breakdown between adults.

Part of the process of bringing about equality between the sexes is changing social attitudes about gender and breaking down the barriers between ‘traditional’ areas of dominance. Whilst we have focused on getting women into male-dominated spheres, it is equally important that men have access to areas which have traditionally been ‘female’ – stay-at-home dads, male nurses, male primary school teachers, and male nursery assistants all have an immensely important role to play. Men may be equally weighed down by the UK’s traditions, and would welcome social acceptability for them to stay at home with their children or take on ‘traditionally female’ work.

  1. How can we encourage men to take a greater role in their children’s lives? What role do educational establishments, the health service and other public organisations have to play in this?
  2. How can we ensure that, after divorce or separation, fathers are encouraged and enabled to maintain a role in their children’s lives?
  3. How can we remove traditional male values from our society so that both men and women can be truly equal in all regards?

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