A minor, but worrying development - the BBC website has changed the title of it's "Education" section to read "Education and Family". In my experience when politicians or think tanks, etc talk about "family" it is bad news. "Family values" means "get back in the kitchen women". People who talk about the importance of "family" are usually trying to stigmatise single mothers or something similar. It's meaningless anyway because we're all in families. Whether you count me, Mr Cru and the cat or whether you include other relatives who don't live with us - it's all family.
This seems to have been timed to co-incide with David Cameron banging on about tax breaks for married couples. This is now the top story on what used to be the education section of the BBC site. Underneath it says:
"'End of nuclear family' forecast
Cameron backs family support
'Toxic cycle' of family breakdown"
Which all comes back to this hideous notion of assuming that "family" = good. When we know perfectly well that for 2 women a week in the UK "family" = murder. We know that child abuse is happening all over the country, domestic violence, forced marriage, marital rape, all these things. Seems to me that if we're going to have a news section about "family" these things should get some coverage - not just David Cameron's largely meaningless quotes.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
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3 comments:
Yes, as a single mother of three, any mention of 'family' by a politician makes me instantly suspicious. You can bet your bottom dollar they're not talking about anything resembling my family. No adult male involved in the equation = not a proper family and therefore irrelevant to them, I think. 'Family values' my arse.
Totally agree Gabby and Cruella - family values are code words for 'patriarchal values - ergo male-headed/male-dominated families. Any other group which does not comprise at least one powerful white, heterosexual adult male becomes 'dysfunctional' or 'deviant.'
Good old Tories and their followers including the supposedly politically neutral BBC for promoting white male supremacy and domination over women and children.
Jeez. Couldn't agree more.
We are living in a time of backlash against feminism. I am convinced of it.
I only hope it doesn't last too long, and what's coming doesn't set feminism and all that is progressive back too far.
If (when) the dear Tories get in they are bound to pacify the Daily Male reading PC gorn mad brigade.
They plan to cut civil service jobs (where I work) to death, because it is full of bureaucrats who do nothing apparently, um, wait, in reality we are all completely overworked...but hey, as a woman, what do I want with a career anyway? I should grab those tax breaks - get married and have 2.4 white kiddies!
I am emigrating to freakin' Sweden. Seriously.
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