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Address: The President Wishes America’s Dads a Happy Father’s Day
The White House
June 14, 2014
Hi, everybody. Sunday is Father’s Day. If you haven’t got Dad a gift yet, there’s
still time. Just barely. But the truth
is, what we give our fathers can never match what our fathers give us.
I know how important it is to
have a dad in your life, because I grew up without my father around. I felt the weight of his absence. So for Michelle and our girls, I try every
day to be the husband and father my family didn’t have when I was young. And every chance I get, I encourage fathers
to get more involved in their children’s lives, because what makes you a man
isn’t the ability to have a child – it’s the courage to raise one.
Still, over the past couple
years, I’ve met with a lot of young people who don’t have a father figure
around. And while there’s nothing that
can replace a parent, any of us can do our part to be a mentor, a sounding
board, a role model for a kid who needs one.
Earlier this year, I launched an initiative called My Brother’s Keeper –
an all-hands-on-deck effort to help more of our young men reach their full
potential. And if you want to be a
mentor to a young man in your community, you can find out how at
WhiteHouse.gov/MyBrothersKeeper.
Now, when I launched this
initiative, I said that government can’t play the primary role in a young
person’s life. Taking responsibility for
being a great parent or mentor is a choice that we, as individuals, have to
make. No government program can ever
take the place of a parent’s love.
Still, as a country, there are ways we can help support dads and moms
who make that choice.
That’s why, earlier this week, we
brought working dads from across America to the White House to talk about the
challenges they face. And in a few
weeks, I’ll hold the first-ever White House Working Families Summit. We’ve still got too many workplace policies
that belong in the 1950s, and it’s time to bring them up to date for today’s
families, where oftentimes, both parents are working. Moms and dads deserve affordable child care,
and time off to care for a sick parent or child without running into
hardship. Women deserve equal pay for
equal work – and at a time when more women are breadwinners for a family, that
benefits men, too. And because no parent
who works full-time should have to raise a family in poverty, it’s time for
Congress to follow the lead of state after state, get on the bandwagon, and
give America a raise.
Dads work hard. So our country should do what we can to make
sure their hard work pays off; to make sure life for them and their families is
a little less stressful, and a little more secure, so they can be the dads
their kids need them to be. Because
there’s nothing more precious in life than the time we spend with our
children. There’s no better feeling than
knowing that we can be there for them, and provide for them, and help give them
every shot at success.
Let’s make sure every dad who
works hard and takes responsibility has the chance to know that feeling, not
just on one Sunday, but every day of the year.
Thanks everybody, happy Father’s Day, and have a great weekend. |
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