Women at the Centre - University of Ottawa

Male View: quote from famous
male leader
• In nature all that is born into the world is born from
the mother, not from the father. Fathers are only
known by a confession from the mother. Adat
knows that the mother is the closest to her children
and is therefore more dominant than the father in
establishing the character of the generations.
Thus, we must protect women and their offspring
because they are also weaker than men. Just as
the weak becomes the strong in nature, we must
make the weaker the stronger in human life. If the
mother abandons or doesn’t recognize her own
child, adat exists to recognize the child’s descent
line and to ensure the child’s worldly welfare.