HAVE you ever heard the saying, ‘You can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family’?
These are words from novelist Harper Lee in her famous book, To Kill A Mockingbird, which couldn’t be more apt today (May 15) as the world acknowledges the International Day of Families.
She said, “You can choose your friends but you sho’ can’t choose your family, an’ they’re still kin to you no matter whether you acknowledge ’em or not, and it makes you look right silly when you don’t.”
Also read: Walking the walk in aid of charity
The day was initiated by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 1993 to promote awareness of the issues that surround families.
Its purpose is also to increase the knowledge of the processes that affect families, including social, demographic and economic factors.
This year’s theme is, ‘Demographic Trends and Families’.
In an article published on the UN’s website, it states that: “Demographic trends are mostly shaped by fertility and mortality patterns. Declining fertility rates result in benefits for families as they are more able to invest in their children’s health and education, which in turn helps with poverty reduction and better socio-economic development.
“Research indicates that decreasing fertility also increases women’s labour participation. On the other hand, fertility declines result in smaller families which are less likely to cope with care and other household obligations. As such, in times of unemployment or illness, families have fewer members to rely on. Moreover, low fertility rates may undermine labour forces and social structures, triggering drastic responses with hard-to-predict consequences, with issues ranging from social security to gender equality.”
In light of this, the UN will launch a paper based on ‘The Impact of Demographic Trends on Families’ among other things.
Family facts:
• A complete family can be defined as an association of two or more persons, with or without children.
• Some statistics show that the support, care and motivation provided by a large extended family may help to reduce the crime rate in a society.
• Children rate family higher than their peers in many cases. One particular study showed that more than 80% of children said that when making serious decisions, it’s the opinion of their parents that they valued over their peers.
For more information, visit https://www.un.org/en/observances/international-day-of-families
For more from the Highway Mail, follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram. You can also check out our videos on our YouTube channel or follow us on TikTok.
