A topic that is extremely important is the lack of parental rights men have. We live in a world where women are assumed the role of the ”better parent” until a father goes through a gruelling and expensive court case to prove otherwise. Not to mention the alienation and demonization fuelled by the mother which is hurting not only fathers, but their children as well.

The saddest and most confronting result of this is that men are being forced into homelessness, depression, financial chaos and suicide in their attempts have equal rights and a place in their child’s life.

I will write more on my own experiences with my friends and families and things I have seen to make me feel this way on another post, today I would like to raise awareness for an organisation I believe needs support to address these issues, change these circumstances and prevent thousands of Australian fathers suffering the same fate that many before them have.

Who are they?

Australian Brotherhood of Fathers is an organisation that promotes pro-family values. They are a group of fathers who are paying attention to fathers suffering at the hands of the legislation in the family court system.

They are a group of fathers who have learnt that asking for equality and fairness is not working, so now they are joining together to demand (in their own words) “social justice reforms in governments and the courts that encourage fair child custody outcomes together with improved economic reforms associated with child support.”

Their core values are respect, mate-ship, loyalty, family values and courage in the home & society.

ABF is headed up by an Australian father named Leith Erikson, and has been running since August 2014. This organisation started in Queensland, Australia and although in its infancy is quickly gaining the attention and support of many people, news & media sources on a national scale.

Why are they here?

Members of the ABF are people from all walks of life. They come from many areas, family situations, varying in race, age, education levels and social demographics.

The one thing they do have in common is they see how damaging and unfair the current circumstances are for thousands of Australian fathers, many of who are taking their lives.

The ABF is shining light onto the facts and statistics that are crippling fathers and abusing children. They are demanding a fair system that allows an equal balance of financial responsibility and active contribution of both parents in a child’s life.

Their key policies and goals are;

Guaranteed 50/50 share care on separation with mandatory enforcement.

Remove CSA calculations and replace with a flat rate child payment based on New Start calculations.

Cap the costs associated with family court access.

Criminalize parental alienation as child abuse.

Payers deserve a more equatable system that promotes shared costs with shared parenting, that doesn’t impact on income changes.

Payees should be encouraged to re-enter the workforce in some capacity as soon as possible to contribute equally to the family unit.

Both parents deserve the freedom and ability to access children without the need to spend thousands of dollars in the family court.

Both parents need to be free from threats of violence or intimidation.

What do they do?

ABF members will visit the family courts and speak with men and women to hear their experiences with the Family Court system and promote awareness for the harm it is causing to Australian Fathers.

They attend wearing signs with messages such as “Parental alienation = child abuse” and “Our kids need fathers, not visitors” and promoting their social media awareness campaign #21fathers

The ABF is committed to raising awareness and promoting change for number of issues which include, but are not limited to;

Lack of recognized rights as a father, limited or no child access on separation

Ever increasing costs of spousal support dressed up as child support

The loss of more than 3 dads daily through suicide

High costs associated with the family court

The ABF is calling for implementation of basic parental rights of access to be be the priority for every community leader and Member of Parliament. They are sending out a message that cannot be contested, if it’s not their priority to ensure equal rights and respensibility they should not be a representative of the people!

#21fathers – Social Media Campaign to raise awareness of the fact that on average, 21 fathers in Australia are committing suicide every week.

This is impacting society and the community and is a leading cause for suicide amongst males in Australia.

We need to help the ABF raise awareness of this and make the necessary changes in society and the law to stop these men taking their own lives and children losing their fathers.

The ABF have a very clear message;

Time and time again we see injustices perpetrated against fathers from a clearly biased court system and the anti-father child support system, which hides behind the frequently used statement that their actions are in the best interests of children. In reality this is a terrible lie used to restrict fathers from fair and reasonable contact with their kids, favouring instead mothers who openly manipulate the process to become the primary custodial parent for monetary gain.

The message here is simple. There are too many fathers taking their lives in Australia because of child access issues, child support financial pressures and family court rulings that are clearly bias toward mothers and leave fathers who seek only their basic human right of maintaining fair contact with their children suffering and in distress.

The ABF is calling on all parties and agencies involved to change how they deal with separated families so that both parents are afforded equal rights of access and care while also providing solutions that reduce financial pressures!

By taking to social media, the streets and people you associate with – the #21fathers campaign you can help the ABF in their quest to raise awareness and save lives!

You can also purchase a T-Shirt to help support here;

http://teespring.com/theabf

Teespring is similar to crowd fund, however no funds will be taken until the goal number of sales are met. It is only 25 T-Shirts until they are running the print – grab yours today and be a part of saving these men!

How you can help?

Visit the website: http://theabf.com.au/

Follow and retweet on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ABF_lobbygroup

Like their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Australian-Brotherhood-of-Fathers/320810958035621

Follow Leith Erikson on Facebook where he shares the action and progress being made: https://facebook.com/profile.php?id=659084530840392

Buy a #21fathers T-Shirt: http://teespring.com/theabf

Contact: info@theabf.com.au

Help Print and distribute flyers in your local area or do letter box drops, flyers available for print can be found here: http://theabf.com.au/be-heard/

ABF is welcoming all people with skills and desire to change. If you can assist with media, attending courtrooms, research or would like more information on how you can become involved REACH OUT!

ABF needs you to step out of your comfort zone and help generate some noise as we lobby for your rights, the rights of your children and the rights of all fathers across the country.

We are about changing the system!

We are about improving the rights of all fathers!

We want our kids to have strong role models and equal access to both parents!

Every father deserves mandatory rights of access whether they need them or not!

Are you willing to stand up for yourself?

Are you willing to stand up for your kids?

If the answer is yes, we need you in the ABF and we need you to get involved!

By sharing my blog post and the links above you can help raise awareness for the Australian Brotherhood of Fathers and help saves lives and families!

If you are a father or have a family member or friend who is affected by these issues and needs help, we encourage you to speak up and reach out to organisations that can help you

Emergency

If there is a life threatening situation call 000

Lifeline

Lifeline is a national charity providing all Australians experiencing a personal crisis with access to 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention services.

Phone: 13 11 14

https://www.lifeline.org.au/

Dads in Distress:

Dedicated support group of men (in Australia) looking to help stem the trend of male suicide due to divorce or separation.

Phone: 1300 853 437

http://www.dadsindistress.asn.au/

Mens Line Australia

MensLine Australia is a professional telephone and online support and information service for Australian men

Phone: 1300 78 99 78

http://www.mensline.org.au/

Mens Rights Agency

Australian organisation supporting men facing family and relationship matters.

Ph: 07 3805 5611

Fx: 07 3200 8768

Mobile: 0409 269 621

E: support@mensrights.com.au

W: www.mensrights.com.au

Postal:

P.O. Box 28

Waterford QLD 4133

Australia

Lone Fathers Association Australia

LFAA has the largest membership of any lone parents organisation, includes both men and women, and does not discriminate against the sexes. The meeting will be open to the public.and anyone with family law or child support problems are very welcome to attend.

http://www.lonefathers.com.au/