THE CHALLENGE OF ABSENT FATHERS

The introduction of the , a report compiled by Sonke Gender Justice and Human Sciences Research Council, talks about the colourful scope of different fathers we have in our country. “There is no typical father in South Africa. There are many types of fathers and many types of fatherhood in the country. There are biological fathers, social fathers, gay fathers, straight fathers, young fathers and older fathers. We have self-identified fatherhood, ascribed fatherhood, long-distance fatherhood and proximal fatherhood, to name only a few. The texture is rich by age, race, class, geotype, ethnicity or family type. Mothers, fathers and children