The Value of Family

A Blueprint for the 21st Century

Contributors

By Dr. Ruth Westheimer

By Ben Yagoda

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$33.00

Price

$42.00 CAD

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  1. Hardcover $33.00 $42.00 CAD
  2. Trade Paperback $19.99 $25.99 CAD

The challenge is great. Despite all the talk about “family values”, the family is besieged. The percentage of children living below the poverty line rose 49 percent from 1973 to 1992; American children are less likely to be immunized than those of any other developed nation; and many corporations still lag behind in areas such as maternity leave, while rewarding workers for long hours away from home. Moreover, the skyrocketing divorce rate and boom in the out-of-wedlock birth rate has relegated the “traditional family” to the realm of myth. Against this grim backdrop, Dr. Westheimer sees tremendous hope. She argues that the family is actually redefining itself in ways that will become more important – and more accepted – in the 21st Century. She points to changes in social attitudes and corporate and governmental policies that will allow for more unconventional but functioning family units, such as “step-” or “blended” families, and families headed by a gay single parent or couple. In addition, she sees generations pulling together for the sake of today’s children, as more and more grandparents become active in their grandchildren’s lives. In this book, help is available. Compiling an exhaustive list of family programs, resources, and self-help groups around the country and on the Internet, Dr. Westheimer tells parents how to get help for themselves and their children. And, sternly taking issue with new governmental legislation that claims to be “pro-family”, she points our leaders in a bold new direction.

On Sale
Jul 19, 1996
Page Count
224 pages
ISBN-13
9780446518758

Ben Yagoda

About the Author

Ben Yagoda is the author of Will Rogers: A Biography and co-editor of The Art of Fact: A Historical Anthology of Literary Journalism. He is a regular contributor to numerous national publications. He teaches journalism at the University of Delaware and lives in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.

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