Feminism: The New Frontier

There is something I have noticed in the library that really bothers me. The women's bathroom has a sign for a diaper change station, while the men's does not. This is discriminatory against both men and women. It is discriminatory against men because a father wishing to change his baby's diaper is not given the proper place to do so, and discriminatory against women because the implication is it is the woman's job, and not the man's, to change diapers.

We have been fighting for women to not have to give up careers to have babies. Maybe now is the time to fight for women to not give up having babies to have careers. Better maternity leave programs, along with paternity leave - which would a) enable fathers to spend more time with their babies b) alleviate the work of the mother, since the father would be around to help out, and maybe even allow the mother time for herself (gasp) during which the father could watch the baby c) generally give couples more room to negotiate more equitable baby-management, as fitting to their preferences, life choices, etc. d) show that society believes it is the man's obligation to care for his child just as much as the woman's

Now, there are legit reasons for women being the ones who get maternity leave: Namely, recuperation from the birthing process, which is physically taxing, and nursing, which obviously can not be done by the man. (Though now, with pumps, women can still breast-feed without having to be with the baby twenty-four seven. And last time I heard, men were perfectly capable of giving babies bottles - though there is something to be said for the maternal bond inherent in nursing, which can not be gotten from a father holding a bottle...I'll leave that discussion up to the lactation consultants.)

Nevertheless, giving fathers, if not paternity leave the way that mothers get maternity leave, at least some form of time off: say, ten extra "personal days" off in the first six months of the babies life, which would allow the father to at least stay home to help out with emergencies, or just to spend more time with his baby...or maybe being allowed to cut-back on hours slightly for the first month of the baby's life - while being compensated for them, the same way a woman on maternity leave is compensated. Since forcing a father to choose between money for his baby and time with his baby is unfair. (Beyond the general quandary of the more time you spend at the office, the more money you have, but the less time you have with your child.)

So basically, maternity leave and paternity leave are the new frontier in women's liberation. Because parenthood is a right that all people, men and women (well at least those who are somewhat psychologically sound) are entitled to.