The very first word that shows up on a headline, in a research paper, or even in a passing conversation when describing a child who has lost their father, or whose father is no longer in their life, is fatherless. That is the first label they hear. The first way the world decides to describe them, not as a child with dreams or potential, but as one without a father. Without the person who could have given them not just protection or support, but love. It becomes the first word that defines them, and the first word they learn to see themselves through. Not only does this label affect them psychologically, but it also isolates them. It makes them feel as though their father has vanished completely, as if he never thinks of them, will never cheer them on when they make an accomplishment, or smile at their milestones. Yet what if this were not the case? What if their father is still there, but in a different way? What if there could be another kind of support, a second family, that reminds them his figure is still present,…
This Program in Rural Egypt is Challenging the ‘Fatherless Child’ Label
October 24, 2025
