We are on time this week and chock full of great links. But first, a couple exciting updates on goings on in and around Explorations.
First, hopefully you saw our most recent article that hit Huff Post last Friday.
Of course, it’s no big deal to you guys––our most hardcore and loyal followers––because you certainly recognized that it was a trimmed down version of a post you read some months ago right here on the mothership (fathership?); however, the brand is pretty stoked about getting our stuff in front of new eyeballs. As always, you guys are way ahead of the curve and the world is just playing catch up.
The particularly cool thing this time though is that this article performed very well, at least as measured by the visible social media metrics. In addition, it was featured on the Huffington Post UK Parents Facebook page and several times on their Twitter. What can I say? The Brits love us. We enjoyed this tweet in particular:
Please address us as Doctor Explorations from now on. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
Second, if you are looking for another way to stay connected with us (hopefully you follow us on Facebook and Twitter already), feel free to enter your email in the box on top of the right side panel. Come on. Just do it. Do you really want to risk missing any of this explosive material?
And finally, we have a fun story in the pipeline. A few days ago I found myself brandishing a stick, chasing a sobbing 3-year-old down the street. I can’t say any more right now, but no worries, all will be explained in due time. The story is in submission at every possible outlet I could think of, but it will show up here in one form or another, hopefully soon. Couple other things are also percolating, so stay tuned.
Linkage!
Mothering a Post-Feminist Boy
A Father's Place
Since becoming a parent, I often find myself grappling more intimately with issues related to gender, and I have yet to arrive at any satisfying conclusions. These articles dig into some key themes and complexities: the first provides a personal perspective, while the second provides a more macro perspective. Both articles are informative, but most such discussions often seem incomplete because they fail to strike at the heart of a central tension. I identify as feminist––meaning that I believe women should have equal rights and that our patriarchal society continues to gift undeserved advantages to men and burden women with undeserved disadvantages––yet, I am a male “working” in a traditionally female-dominated field (parenting) and being in that position has opened my eyes to many of the ways in which men are portrayed as inherently lesser than, and in some cases, downright incompetent. I feel like bringing attention to these instances––such as by discussing the lingering stigma experienced by stay-at-home dads––highlights a larger issue: how gender expectations are harmful, full stop. Not just harmful for women, but harmful for everyone. Women lose out when they are denied jobs because of discrimination, but we all lose out when talented people are denied opportunities they deserve. Similarly, men are ostensibly harmed when they are portrayed as incompetent care givers for their children, but we all lose (and women in particular lose) when an entire gender is given an easy out from parenting responsibilities because a cartoonish stereotype obliterates any expectations. However, I can also see the other side: am I not really complaining because, for once in the history of human society, as a man, I feel slighted as a result of gender bias? Why was I not speaking up when the system was working in my favor, as it almost always does? Am I not guilty of the classic anti-feminist sin of asking, when confronting an unjust system, “But, what about the men/boys?” I don’t really know, but I think I am, in some ways, guilty of all of these things. So, my ultimate aim, when it comes to issues of gender, is to listen and read much more than I speak or write. The struggle continues.
A Tax on Blackness
Continuing on the Baltimore theme that we stumbled into because of events occurring at the time of the first Link-apalooza, here is another article expanding on a key problem at the heart of the unrest in Baltimore and other such incidents: Because of our discriminatory society and the systems in place that perpetuate discriminatory practices, the birth lottery too often dictates a person’s life outcomes. This week’s focus: discriminatory real estate practices.
Inside Kate Middleton's Home Life
Only one nanny and no mention of handservants? Perhaps I have underestimated you, Wate.
However, I found this section to be a bit odd…
Prince William’s job (as an air-ambulance pilot) will include shift work and hard labor, but his schedule will allow him to spend ample time with his two children. “Charlotte and George will grow up seeing their father not just as a royal, but as a hard worker,” says Bromley. “He could have taken a longer paternity leave, but it’s a new job and he’s committed to it,” says Bromley.
Yes, taking paternity leave is definitely an indicator that you are not committed to your job. And getting back to work as soon as possible should in no way be construed as an attempt to avoid childcare duties. I won’t say anymore (see above).
Kurt Cobain Album to Arrive This Summer
Wait, what? Only including this because it is not a headline I was expecting to see in the year 2015.
Jacob’s Words of Wisdom
When it comes to bridge building, “It takes practice.”
P.S. It did not go unnoticed by me that throughout this post I switch back and forth between 'I' and 'we,' somewhat arbitrarily. We are not sure which way we like better; so, I'm still experimenting. The perks of being writer and editor-in-chief...
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