Fix the Family, a Catholic centered lifestyle blog, has never been known for their feminist ideals. They preach traditional gender roles to the nth degree: the man is the provider and head of household, while the woman cooks, cleans, cares for the children, and submits to her husband. But even when you know not to take the things a website says too seriously, sometimes they go ahead and post something so archaic and misguided that you can’t help but feel the feminist rage brew.
Such was the case with their post entitled “6 Reasons to NOT Send Your Daughter to College,” a list detailing exactly why women should be kept out of higher education, and kept in the home, focused on the family (The article was later edited to make it eight reasons, in case six weren’t enough to convince you…).
The assumption that all women want to get married and have children is the very first thing that strikes me about this article. Raylan Allerman, the author of the blog and head of the Fix the Family website, seems to believe that women hold no aspirations or goals that are career oriented. Instead, he argues that girls who go to college are wasting their time, money, and purity while waiting for a husband to come along and protect/provide for them.
College is a time where many kids grow up. Other than their academic pursuits, it can be a place for them to make connections that can help them in the workplace, make lifelong friends, explore their sexuality and independence, and also, discover a sense of self that will help them decide what road they want to take on life’s journey.
On the flip side, many people choose not to go to college, and are well-rounded, educated and successful. Many of my close friends (both male and female) either didn’t have the means to attend, or decided it wasn’t the path for them. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with not attending college, but in this article, Allerman makes it sound as though women should not even be offered the option. That’s where I take offense.
Granted, this is a Catholic based website, so their posts are going to be filled with arguments based on doctrines and teachings from the church. But Allerman’s point of view in this list are shocking, even from a religion dominated by a patriarchy that believes women should not work outside the home. It’s not that women are lesser, they say, it’s just that men and women have different God-given roles. Having a college degree, Allerman feels, would cause a woman to feel “obligated to use it,” thus, taking time away from her family and her main responsibilities.
If a woman chooses to stay home with her children because her husband is able to provide for the family, that is absolutely her right. But it should be a choice, not an obligation. What about women who aren’t married, or who can’t have/don’t want children? These situations are not addressed anywhere in the article.
Allerman’s list is expansive and frustrating, because not a single thing he says is logical or well founded. It’s nothing more than a misogynistic list that hopes to keep women in a submissive role.
We all know the adage, “knowledge is power.” And a powerful woman is something that Allerman (and many other men) are incredibly fearful of. Perhaps Allerman hopes that by keeping women from higher education, he’ll also keep them from truly comprehending how much of a tool he is.
Thanks (?) to Fix the Family
Images courtesy of Fix the Family
