In recent years the rights of Fathers has become a highly controversial issue. Groups such as father- 4-justice have embarked on hard-hitting campaigns that have attempted to expose discrimination within British Law and the judicial system against the rights of men to have access to their children after divorce. British law, it is argued, is both unequal in this regard and damaging to the welfare of children, fathers and families. In this essay I shall argue that British family law does indeed discriminate against father’s and that the law should be changed. The essay is divided into three main sections: (1) Cultural attitudes to fathers and fatherhood; (2) unequal treatment of fathers within British Family Law and the judicial system that upholds it; (3) the social and pyschological consequences of descrimination aagainst fathers and thus why/how the law should be changed.

Cultural attitidues to fathers and fatherhood

For centuries the dominant conception of the role of fathers was as the breadwinner who would provide for his wife and children. The role of women was to maintain the family home and care for the children. This division of roles was, and still is in some quarters, supported by natural law, scientific reason or religious belief. In other words, the traditional division of roles between men and women was either divinely ordained or it was simply the natural, biological order. Until recently, this division of roles enabled, in western societies, a patriarchal order. Men’s role enabled them to control the structures of power within society and thus the lmited rights of women. Family issues were largely a private matter and to a considerable extent beyond the jurisdiction of the law.

Since the 1960’s however this patriarchal order has to a significant extent been diminished. The sexual liberation of women, the advancement of women in public life and secularisation has brought about a different set of cultural attitudes regarding the familial roles of men and women. However, this shift in cultural attitudes has not led to quite as much change in relation to the conception of the role of men. To be sure, it is now widely thought that men need not neccessarily be the main breadwinners and that they should carry out their fair share of household and child-caring duties.