ABSTRACT
There is often some confusion as to what the term “best interests of the child” actually means, especially the subtle nuances of it in particular situations. How do we decide what is in the best interests of the child? Who decides? Do the parents’ needs always coincide with the child’s? Is it in the best interests of the child to shift to co-parenting if a parent had no interest to be one during a marriage? How can we get uninvolved parents reinvested in parenting before we decide that there should just be co-parenting because we believe in equality? This chapter not only examines the impact of the patriarchal system on mothers’ oppression but also the myth of how such a system can only operate at the expense of a matriarchal one. In our search for equality for all, are we disempowering mothers? How can increased father recognition sometimes undermine motherhood and reinforce the injustice of equalizing parenting but not work? In answering these questions, while also exploring related background and context, critical issues, and future directions for research, I argue that we need to think about how to reconcile our need to be all-inclusive in parenting, while recognizing that the best interests of the child and the mother need to be adequately served.
