Feminists in the ‘70s started out by
demanding a more equal division of care
between men and women on the grounds of
fairness. After a while the strategy changed,
both in the women’s movement and in
official emancipation policy: men were to be
convinced that raising children was rewarding,
and that fathers were indispensable.
A lot has been achieved since then. A
majority of the public in the Netherlands
now disagrees that women are better
suited than men to raise small children. But
this change has had to be paid for by new
stereotyping: fathers are said to be essentially
different from mothers (fathers are good at
challenging, mothers good at protecting).
More and more people in surveys agree that
a child needs both a mother and a father.
Which can lead to problems for single,
divorced, or gay parents.
