In 2008, the Obama government ran ads for dads making fools of themselves. The ads were insults to dads.
HTML clipboardDear Don,
OneMillionDads.com,
You recommend that we give thanks to the organizations mentioned in your message (appended) for promoting PSAs that will ostensibly create a positive image of fathers.
I see a few things wrong with the image of fathers that is being created through those PSAs.
There is nothing wrong with having dads play with their kids, but the first impression I got from those PSAs when I watched them was a cutting pain in my gut on account of dads making fools of themselves by acting like kids.
Dads are teachers, leaders and role models. They are not likely to be respected all that much by their kids if all that they do is behave like kids. Their kids should be shown that their dads can behave like kids, but that is not, by far, all that dads do. Kids need to know that, too, but the PSAs don’t show that at all.
The message behind the PSAs is that dads abrogate their parental responsibilities, and that to cure that problem, all that is necessary is for dads to become involved instead of being absent from their children’s lives. For the vast majority of dads that were expunged from their children’s lives the children’s mothers and government agencies who kicked them out are the true obstacles that need to be overcome. Many mothers and the government are gate keepers who bar access to the fathers of the “mothers’ ” children.
There is not a hint of that in the PSAs you praise. In fact, it seems to me that those PSAs are close to being insults to exiled fathers who can’t even wave to their kids if they happen to see them somewhere in the streets without running the danger of being thrown into jail for violating restraining orders that were obtained under false pretenses.
Aside from that, some of the dads who return from fighting for democracy, home and country have not much of anything left to play with. To boot, many are being kept away from their wives and from children of whom quite a few were not even fathered by them, and they must cope with that while being fitted for artificial limbs.
Spare us insulting ads that make dads look like fools.
Sincerely,
Walter Schneider
http://fathersforlife.org
http://bog.fathersforlife.org
Cc: Various fathers rights activists
—Original Message—
August 6, 2008
Great Dad ads deserve our thanks
Dear Walter,
The Advertising Council, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse recently launched two new public service advertisements (PSAs) designed to show dads the critical role they play in their children’s lives.
Click an image below to watch the ad. Or, click here.
Requires Windows Media Player?
[Update 2017 07 20: Don’t bother clicking on those links. You will just get a 404 error: “Page not found,” but the link in the following paragraph still works.]
Created pro bono by Campbell-Ewald, the new TV, radio, print, outdoor and on-line PSAs emphasize to fathers that “the smallest moments can have the biggest impact on a child’s life.” The PSAs conclude with the tagline, “Take time to be a dad today” and direct fathers to visit www.fatherhood.gov or call 1-877-4DAD411 for parenting tips and additional resources for fathers.
Take Action
Please thank the organizations above for creating refreshing ads promoting the importance of fatherhood. An email letter has been prepared, or you may wish to write your own.
Send Your Letter Now!
Sincerely,
Donald E. Wildmon, Chairman
OneMillionDads.com
P.S. Please forward this to your family and friends!
