All In Book Review

Being a father (or a parent in general) is not easy. It is a 24/7, 365 day a year job  that does not stop when your child turns eighteen. It is an entire lifestyle change that forever changes everything about your world.

Up until a few years ago, journalist and blogger Josh Levs did not know what to expect when he became a father. After being denied time off after the birth of his child, Mr. Levs fought back for time off and won. In his new book, All In: How Our Work-First Culture Fails Dads, Families, and Businesses–And How We Can Fix It Together, Mr. Levs examines what it is to be a modern father. 

The book’s main focus is that despite the change in society regarding a father’s role in the life of his family and his children, the rigid gender roles remain. Mr. Levs is not the only father who, despite his need and want to be home with his child, he was expected to leave the child rearing to his wife.  He also explores issues of the image on fathers on television, how not having a father affects children and how the legal system, in many cases favors mothers when it comes to divorce and custodial cases.

I found this book to be very interesting. Fatherhood has obviously evolved over the decades,  especially in the wake of the feminist revolution. Many fathers have taken on the responsibilities that were once only the domain of women or have taken jobs that allow them to be home with their children. Ultimately, what I was reminded of when I finished the book is that permanently smashing gender norms is not just a burden put on the shoulders of women. It is also up to the men in our lives to take a stand, especially when it comes their children.

I absolutely recommend it.

 

 

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The Flag Of South Carolina

Sometimes, it takes a an extraordinary event to force change.

Last week’s murder of nine African-Americans in Charleston proved once more that even with the great strides we have made toward transparent and real racial equality, we have a long way to go.

Since the news of the murders, many have called for South Carolina to change the state flag.

Many in the region might say that history and tradition  are the reason that the Confederate flag remains the state flag despite the history that the flag represents.

But there are others that see the flag as representative of an era when African-Americans were forced into slavery and prevented from receiving their full rights as human beings and citizens.

We cannot go back to the past and change what has already happened. But we can move forward and learn from the past. That includes changes the images that represent the past that we do not want to repeat.