On Reclaiming Father's Day

This is a problematic holiday. It’s problematic for people who don’t have fathers; it’s problematic for people who don’t get along with their fathers, it’s problematic in that it reinscribes the idea of the nuclear family and negates, say, mine. And when I say “problematic” what I mean is “really fucking depressing,” because if you’re in any of the above categories, the last thing you want is a zillion pictures of square-jawed, wholesome, usually-white guys in polo shirts being hugged by winsome little girls with a caption saying something along the lines of “you were always there for me.”

I don’t think it has to be like that, though. Because the thing is, we don’t all have “a man who sired us, raised us, and is still an important and loving part of our lives.” But what if we adjust the definition of father? ( Read more... )