While I was on Facebook the other day, an article popped up on my feed called "TBH, I'm Not OK With Daddy-Daughter 'Dates'". It was an article about the growing patriarchy of men, and how fathers who take their daughters on dates are raising their young girls to be dependent on a man to do everything, which is, simply put, not true.
When a dad takes his daughter on a date, it is not gross or fundamentally encouraging a young girl to depend on a man. The way the father acts during the date should be, instead, used as a guide for how women should choose the men they want to date. Too many women these days go on Tinder dates or fragmented one-night stands, with no self-respect and no men worth their time. While women are out objectifying themselves to these arrogant men that have only one goal in mind, other women, who had a guide to look up to, are looking for men that respect and genuinely appreciate them.
Spending time with a father figure growing up is essential for girls. If they find their first love in their father (or another father figure in their life), they'll realize the importance of finding a man with the same (or sometimes not the same) qualities. This is not saying that women should find men who do everything for them, but they should find a man worthy of their time and love.
Ladies, do not get so caught up in this women's rights movement that you forget the way a man is supposed to treat you. Let him open the door for you. Let him buy your dinner. Let him treat you like a princess. Let him respect you because men like this are in a dying minority. It's a lot harder to march for your rights when you aren't respected.
By all means, stand your ground. Be equal, march for equality, and don't let anyone think that because of your gender you are inferior. But, don't let that stop you from realizing you are worthy of more than some man who doesn't really care about you. And don't let that stop you from raising your daughters to understand that they deserve respect and genuine love; not one-night stands.
By taking your daughter on a date, you aren't hurting her or causing her to think irrationally. You aren't creating a power-dynamic in which one gender is overpowering the other. This isn't what it's about. Taking your daughter to dinner isn't going to make her passive or submissive - it will make her smart. It will give her the opportunity to understand that she deserves a man like her father. She deserves respect, because she is empowering. She is a woman. And it's about time people start remembering that.
