Why Is There No Motherhood.gov?

This month the comforting voice of Barack Obama is plugging a new government website in a series of public service announcements. Listeners are urged to visit Fatherhood.gov, which describes itself as a "National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse." I must say that looking at this website, I find myself irritated with more than the strange use of a noun as a modifier, as though fatherhood is something that could be stacked up efficiently and inventoried. (Even those who teach written composition love the clearinghouse trope, so I should probably just give up on that fight.)

Instead I'll start with the fact that there is no Motherhood.gov and the weird assumption that the government should be invested with patriarchal authority. Of course, it isn't the only asymmetrical government website. There is a WomensHealth.gov but no corresponding MensHealth.gov. There is a GirlsHealth.gov as well, which is similarly unmated.

I also have to note the frequency of the word "important" on the site, which appears over fifty times on a relatively small number of web pages. Fathers are asked "Are you important?" Obama describes it as "the most important job." It is as though the message of patriarchy needs to be marked "important" in an e-mail or memo.