The video “#DearDaddy” is an open letter to all men, especially fathers, about girls and daughters who are targeted by men because of their gender. The video expresses the emotional struggles girls and women endure because of the way opposite genders interact. Often times, poor behavior by the male gender is justified by saying, “it’s something boys do.” This is one of the reasons why females are continually treated the way they are. Boys, guys, men — males of all ages are guilty of treating females as the inferior gender.
This video addresses fathers by talking about how boys can be mean. The video also explains that those fathers were once boys, too. Fathers were once boys trying to impress friends and joke with girls, but sometimes the jokes are not funny and are out of line. Sometimes, the jokes are taken literally. Sometimes, one negative word can stick with a girl forever. Call a girl fat and she will quit eating, tell a girl she’s a bitch and she will stop standing up for herself, but tell a girl that she’s worth it or beautiful or wanted will change her life. Words matter. So the video proves the point that if fathers want their daughters to be treated better, don't they need to stop the poor behavior, that targets females, at boyhood when it first begins?
The video also illustrates how girls are often manipulated when drunk as if the word “no” suddenly loses its meaning on top of a bed. The word “no” is not a joke. “No” is not funny, and it should always be taken seriously. However, "no" is not always taken seriously and often times, girls get taken advantage of in the most serious of ways. Respect for females must be taught to males from the earliest years. Their insulting jokes are only jokes until those jokes later become about rape, assault, and a girl laying in the backseat of a taxi crying for help. Laughing eases the pain against cruel words, but those insulting words that are spoken can trickle through ear-to-ear. Laughter may fade but the actions that may be committed later on to an innocent female will not. Once something is said, it cannot be taken back. Behind every joke there is always some truth and words matter.
Strong, independent women are not whores and should never be called such. Women are strong, but also fragile. Women are independent, but also loving. Women are a lot of qualities, but women are not the words spat out of a man’s mouth when he no longer knows how to say the words “I love you.” This video portrays how males grow up, and the way in which innocent jokes become reality, and then reality becomes an awful place to live in. As humans, we all have pieces of ourselves that we have kept from childhood, middle school, high school, and we use those pieces to mold ourselves into an older and more mature self. Like a puzzle, the pieces intertwine together to make a full picture. Therefore, “#DearDaddy” expresses how certain pieces of men can come back through elapsed time. Just because it has been a few years does not mean someone has changed completely. A young boy telling inappropriate jokes can later become a man with no respect for women.
The words “love” and “hate” capture two very different meanings, but they are often combined into the same sentence. It’s bittersweet. It’s bittersweet living as a female in a world that has always been powered by male domination. But it is even more bittersweet living as a father in a world that will always target his precious daughter. This open letter to fathers everywhere brings a new light on what fatherhood means: words matter. The way in which words are used, said, and even thought about is something that parents have to pay attention to.
The power of language is often overlooked. How many times have I heard someone say to me, “Oh, you’re an English Major. What are you going to do with that?” Well, I am going to write an article that makes you think. I am going to say words to your daughter that can change her life. I am going to use my words to get a message across: we, as a society, must stop pretending that words don't matter. Letters are the individual pieces of gunpowder formulated into words that are pushed into the barrel of a sentence and shot through the lips of someone’s mouth which target the heart. This open letter is more than just about a verbal letter from a girl to father; it is a letter composed of scar tissue, open wounds, and real life events that are happening every single day.
Warning: "She will be born a girl. Please do everything you can so that that won’t be the greatest danger of all.”
