Stand for the Family

I was given a copy of Stand for the Family to review.  Thank you, Cecily, for giving me the opportunity to discover this fascinating and eye-opening book.

Sharon Slater makes the case that the traditional family is under attack.  She unveils the attackers and shows us the methods that they use to undermine the family.  She then gives us suggestions on what we can do to fight against the onslaught.  The book is very well-researched, and she cites study after study backing up the information she includes.

The two groups she identifies as being the biggest threats to the family are radical feminists and homosexual activists.  Slater does a good job differentiating between individuals and lobbying groups; she's not saying that every homosexual and every feminist are against the family, but she exposes those groups who have declared that their intent is to dismantle the institution of the family.

Some of these groups' methods are obvious, such as bypassing public opinion and legislatures to take their issues to the courts.  Others are more surprising, like lobbying the United Nations to include anti-family language in the resolutions that are passed.  Slater shows how although you wouldn't think that such resolutions carry much weight, governments and courts around the world use them in their decision making.

Slater's book is a call to vigilance, a call to civic action.  Our greatest weapons against these attacks are speaking out and using our vote to elect individuals who are willing to fight against these groups.

I would have liked to see a chapter devoted to the topic of divorce, which is as big a threat to the family as the other groups she mentions.  It is something that most people have more control over than what is happening in governments or the UN.  I also think she should have cited some of the evidence that is out there showing how important fathers are to the development of their children.  It would have strengthened an already strong case for the traditional family structure.

I thought that the organization of the book was sloppy.  Slater begins the book by discussing battles at the UN over a cause she has yet to convince us to believe in.  It isn't until the third chapter that she talks about the importance and benefits of the traditional family.  Also, the suggestions at the end of each chapter tend to ramble and overlap.  I would have preferred to see just one final chapter with suggestions of how to fight back. 

I would highly recommend this book.   It is a wake-up call to what is going on around us.  Buy it and then pass it along to your friends and family.  We need more people to stand for the family or suffer the consequences when these groups succeed.