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Date published: 6/15/2001
By DIANNA THOMPSON
LAKE FOREST, Calif.--Father's Day, our national celebration of fatherhood, traditionally evokes warm memories of the times we spent with our fathers; taking that first bike ride, catching our first fish, or the look on Dad's face when he solemnly handed over the car keys for These recollections last a lifetime; indeed, they are integral threads in the fabric of our lives. Unfortunately, too many American children will never experience these fond memories. In 1966, President Johnson declared the third Sunday of June Father's Day. But now, startling research shows that 35 years later, half of America's children are living apart from their fathers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 1960 20 percent of all marriages ended in divorce; in 1990, that number was up to nearly half of all marriages. And 1999 marked the first time that a full one-third of all U.S. births were to unwed mothers, according to the National Center for Health and Statistics. Moreover, it isn't always a happy Father's Day for the 14 million noncustodial parents in this country. Many fathers won't even get to see their children Sunday unless the day falls on their every-other-weekend visitation schedule. These days, traditional parental roles become somewhat blurred. Fathers nurture and make dinner, mothers work and pay the bills. Unfortunately, many of society's institutions haven't caught up in this evolving social landscape. The courts must recognize that we are no longer living in the 1950s. With more women than ever in the work force, fathers are actively involved in the day-in, day-out caring for their children. Yet in custody battles, women receive custody 84.1 percent of the time, according to the Census Bureau. Nothing stuns a divorcing father as deeply as hearing a judge relegate him from caring role model to mere "visitor" in his children's lives. More important, no child should ever lose a parent as a result of a divorce in which he or she had no choice.
1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
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