It’s time to talk unapologetically about fathers and their needs 

Last week, when Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), a candidate for Senate, announced the birth of his daughter and the start of his paternity leave, he took the opportunity to advocate for paid leave for all new parents. A member of the Congressional Dads Caucus, Gallego’s statement reflected the dual premise of the caucus as defined by caucus founder Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.): “dads need to do our part — both at home with our kids, and in the halls of Congress voting for policies that uplift working families.” 

As researchers who study the role of fathers in child and family well-being, wecelebrate the founding this year of the Dads Caucus. The existence and advocacy of the caucus is a powerful demonstration that issues such as paid family and medical leave, affordable childcare, and an expanded Child Tax Credit are not only women’s issues.  As noted by Gomez in a Father’s Day op-ed, mothers disproportionately bear the burden of insufficient public support to families with young children. The Dads Caucus aims to disrupt this inequity, calling on fathers to take up their share of caregiving and play a key role alongside mothers and others in advocating for legislation that will ensure all parents and caregivers have the resources they need to care for their family.   

Ensuring all parents and caregivers have the resources they need to care for their family will require a focused look at the needs of fathers. From parenting programs to parenting research, fathers are often overlooked, their absence obscured by use of the umbrella term “parenting.” In the policy realm, well-meaning advocates often misdirect their advocacy by focusing attention away from fathers and towards parents.   

It’s crucial to talk directly and unapologetically about fathers and their needs. Fathers — particularly low-income, non-resident, and racially marginalized fathers — face unique barriers and damaging false narratives about their importance in their children’s lives. The systems of care that serve children and families frequently do not recognize or engage fathers as important and valued caregivers. Fathers need champions in Congress to raise awareness of their experiences and advance policies that will remove barriers and enhance opportunities for fathers, their children and families to thrive.  

One issue the Dads Caucus could take up is recognition and inclusion of fathers in efforts to promote maternal and child health. Fathers are influential in maternal and child health, yet we know little about, and do little to encourage, fathers’ involvement in pregnancy and support for healthy pregnancy. Since 1987, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state health departments have collaborated to learn about mothers’ behaviors, attitudes and experiences across pregnancy through PRAMS, the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System. The only question about dads on the PRAMS survey has been, “Did your partner hit, kick, beat or slap you during your pregnancy?” This is woefully inadequate.  

Northwestern University researchers partnered with the CDC and the Georgia Department of Public Health to develop and pilot PRAMS for Dads, a parallel survey to the original PRAMS designed to gather data on the behaviors and experiences of men as they enter fatherhood.  The first findings of this pilot study were published last month showing that fathers play a major role in infant feeding and sleep and need additional education about safe sleep practices for infants and how to support mothers who wish to breastfeed. This pilot demonstrates the need for national investigation of new fathers’ experiences and support needs. In the words of PRAMS for Dads developer Craig Garfield, “Just as we have had decades of federal funding to track the health of new mothers, we need the legislative will to build the public health infrastructure to track and respond to the needs of new dads, to help them truly be there for their child and family.” 

Another issue the Dads Caucus could take up is paternal mental health. Men experience as much as a 68 percent increase in depression symptoms in the first five years of fatherhood, and that can negatively affect parenting, family relationships and child development. While it’s increasingly common to talk about and screen for depression among new mothers, depression among new fathers, though common, is much less visible. Lack of awareness is a barrier to fathers receiving care for depression.

Every new parent who experiences depression deserves support. Building on recent congressional action to address maternal mental health, the Dads Caucus could help to raise awareness of the prevalence, presentation, and consequences for families of paternal depression, and call for a national strategy for paternal mental health.

As the Dads Caucus continues to build out its agenda, we hope to see the caucus advocate for fathers specifically as well as parents and families broadly, and this is especially so for marginalized fathers. Our own research in Wisconsin, conducted in partnership with the African American Breastfeeding Network, refutes the myth of absent Black fathers. We find that Black fathers are actively involved during pregnancy, including as a presence alongside mothers in perinatal health care, but the policy and services environment often impedes rather than facilitate father participation. As one father who participated in our research told us, “They’re looking for you to not care, to not be present…. I wanted to be there for her each and every step, and I was there … but as a Black man [it was on me] to have to say that I won’t allow anyone to separate me.” Addressing the marginalization of fathers and meeting fathers’ needs for support is vital to promoting child and family well-being.

Still in its infancy, the Dads Caucus is already making an impact by raising awareness of challenges that parents face and advocating for family-friendly policies. Recently, the caucus announced its first bill endorsements: the American Family Act and the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act. We are delighted by these endorsements. And we look forward to the day when the Dads Caucus announces the Black Paternal Health Act and fellow members of Congress offer their endorsements for this much needed bill.   

Tova Walsh is an associate professor of social work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Alvin Thomas is an assistant professor of human development and family studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the host of the Black Fatherhood Podcast.  They are both members of the Scholars Strategy Network.