Off-Topic -- Gender Discrimination

Hey all,

My third son was born on Tuesday via cesarian section (he was breech). He's healthy, drinking well, and his Mom should be coming home with him tomorrow. Hooray!

I'm having a problem with the sexist language in the document I am required to sign in order to get my name on my son's birth certificate (because his mother and I are not legally married). It's the same problem I had with my last son's birth certificate. Essentially they want me to sign a document that among other things states that I will support my son financially.

Now I do intend to support my son financially, or at least to make my fair share of the financial contribution to his upbringing. But I feel that forcing me, the father, to sign a document promising to support my child financially in order to get my name on his birth certificate is gender discrimination if his mother is not forced to sign a similar statement agreeing to support him financially in order to get HER name on his birth certificate.

I feel that if there were a jewelry shop that forced Black people to sign a document promising not to steal anything before they were allowed in, but not White people, many if not all Black people would find the rule insulting and demeaning and would refuse to sign the document. They might fight to prevent the store from enforcing such a rule, and that resistance would not mean that they intended to steal anything from the store.

I explained this to the clerk who worked at the office in the hospital and her response was literally, "Well, but what it was the OWNER of the store... <shrug> I don't know."

I do remember talking to some officials about this when my last son was born, and one of them mentioned that years ago a non-custodial mother actually did try to use the absence of a signed document as proof that she didn't need to pay child support to the (custodial) father of her child. The official claimed that the courts did not accept the woman's argument, as if that made it OK that only men needed to sign such a statement in order to get their names on their childrens' birth certificates.

To extend the analogy above, this is like an official claiming that one time a White person was caught stealing jewelry in the store, and tried to argue that they should not be punished because they never signed a document stating that they would not steal anything, but the courts wouldn't listen to that argument, so the law requiring Blacks to sign off that they would not steal before entering the store was fair and unbiased. Hogwash.

This is in Rhode Island. I refuse to sign the document and right now I feel that if after following the proper channels I get nowhere closer to getting my name on my son's birth certificate, I am ready to hire a lawyer and sue the state for gender discrimination.

Has anyone ever heard of anything similar to this? I was pretty upset about it (again) but I calmed down a bit when I realized that I was prepared to make an issue out of it with the courts.

Thanks,

- Ron ^*^

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Relevant Pages

  • Re: Off-Topic -- Gender Discrimination
    ... My third son was born on Tuesday via cesarian section. ... problem I had with my last son's birth certificate. ... anything from the store. ... Discrimination based on race is expressly prohibited in federal civil ...
    (rec.games.frp.dnd)
  • Re: Off-Topic -- Gender Discrimination
    ... It's the same problem I had with my last son's birth certificate. ... Essentially they want me to sign a document that among other things states that I will support my son financially. ... anything from the store. ... Discrimination based on race is expressly prohibited in federal civil ...
    (rec.games.frp.dnd)
  • Re: Off-Topic -- Gender Discrimination
    ... My third son was born on Tuesday via cesarian section. ... (because his mother and I are not legally married). ... problem I had with my last son's birth certificate. ... Now I do intend to support my son financially, or at least to make my ...
    (rec.games.frp.dnd)
  • Re: Off-Topic -- Gender Discrimination
    ... I'm having a problem with the sexist language in the document I am required to sign in order to get my name on my son's birth certificate (because his mother and I are not legally married). ... Essentially they want me to sign a document that among other things states that I will support my son financially. ... Now I do intend to support my son financially, or at least to make my fair share of the financial contribution to his upbringing. ...
    (rec.games.frp.dnd)
  • Re: Off-Topic -- Gender Discrimination
    ... My third son was born on Tuesday via cesarian section. ... (because his mother and I are not legally married). ... problem I had with my last son's birth certificate. ... support my son financially. ...
    (rec.games.frp.dnd)