Let's face it, in the current environment of hype and bonanza-merchandising, Father's Day comes in second to Mother's Day in terms of the public attention which it attracts. Despite this, Father's Day has its place in the celebration of the human family, regardless of the drastic changes in the parenting roles and a tendency to discuss the role of fathering more often in the negative than the positive.

If we are not careful, we could fall into the trap of judging all fathers by the deviations from the norm which make the news and evoke hand-wringing and lamentation. This is not to say that there should not be concern for the social problems caused by teenage dads, predatory and destructive dads, deadbeat dads, absentee dads and all the designation of fathers who have failed their partners and their children by irresponsible conduct.

This has served to create unflattering stereotypes in our Jamaican society where our men, particularly at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale, have lived with the stigma of careless parenting, accused of leaving the responsibility of fatherhood to be undertaken almost exclusively by the female. However, the eminent Jamaican scholar, Dr. Maureen Samms-Vaughan, in a research project on the role of men in Jamaican families states:

"Jamaican fathers are often depicted as peripheral, absent or uninterested in the family but research does not support this portrayal ... Existing data suggest that men are far more involved in contributing to the development of their children than popular stereotypes suggest." From her we learn also that research, based on existing data, also reveals that "one-half of children under the age of six live with their fathers and approximately four out of every five fathers contribute to the financial support of their children."

Another signal of hope is the formation of a voluntary organisation like Fathers Inc., dedicated to teaching and encouraging responsible fatherhood practices. The group has evolved into a strong support system especially for men who have to be raising their children alone, a phenomenon which is indicative of the social dislocations of our times, affecting not only mothers but fathers as well.

Of interest too, is the recent drive by the Registrar General's Department (RGD) to get more fathers to accept the responsibility of paternity and affix their names to their offspring's birth certificates, a necessary but often ignored pre-requisite of the legal registration of children. According to the RGD, some 60 per cent of the fathers of children registered in recent times, have added their names and other required information to their children's birth certificates. Prior to that, it is stated that the compliance rate was only 30 per cent.

As encouraging as these accomplishments are, it must be admitted that there is much more to be done towards changing old, negative attitudes towards fathering. Reform of laws governing the administration of family obligations are useful and necessary to ensure that fathers do not default on child support and other such requirements. Besides that, however, there must be drives to create increased responsibility which goes with fatherhood.

Nobody would suggest that the road to change will be easy. In the words of Pope John XXIII: "It is easier for a father to have children than for children to have a real father." Yet, rejoicing in what has been and in hopes for where we can go, today, let's raise a glass to fathers, grandfathers, surrogate fathers, indeed, all men who accept the awesome responsibility of parenting. Happy Father's Day, gentlemen!

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