Netflix’s “Daughters” Shows The Power Of Father-Daughter Relationships

Netflix’s latest documentary “Daughters” puts the power of the father-daughter bond on full display. The Kerry Washington-produced documentary follows the story of four young girls, as they prepare to spend invaluable time with their fathers in prison.

Directed by Natalie Rae and Angela Patton, “Daughters” introduces viewers to Aubrey, Santana, Raziah and Ana. They are four young girls who are preparing to go to a daddy daughter dance. Spanning over eight years, the documentary follows these girls as they vulnerably share their hopes, dreams and hardships. The almost two-hour Sundance award-winning film sheds a light on the emotional toll of a father’s absence. It also shows the significance of the bond between a daughter and her father. For many, those few hours of the dance left a lasting impact on their lives.

Those invaluable hours are possible because of The Date With Dad initiative sponsored by Patton’s nonprofit Girls For A Change . It allows daughters and their incarcerated fathers to spend quality time with each other beyond the orange jumpsuits and plexiglass. The men wear suits and ties, as they dance, laugh, take pictures and bond with their daughters.

In the program, the leads select a group of fathers from the prison to participate. They have to go through fatherhood coaching for 10 weeks to prepare them for all of the emotions the day will bring. While the process can be emotionally taxing, it quickly becomes a safe haven for some of the men. The end result is six amazing hours building a relationship with their daughters. For most of the participants, it marks a change in the trajectory of their life.

“For that six hours, I wasn’t incarcerated,” said Mark, the father of 10-year-old Santana. “My mind was literally with my daughter. I wasn’t thinking [about] nothing, and like when it was time for her to go I was confused.”

This unique opportunity allows fathers the chance to hold their daughters and communicate with them directly. For many of the fathers, this is the first time they have had the chance to actually touch them. The opportunity for a lot of the men is life-changing. According to the documentary, 95 percent of men don’t return to prison after spending these few hours with their children.

“Throughout my whole life, I never stayed out of prison for more than I want to say six months,” he said, reflecting on his life after the dance. “It’s going on four years, and I haven’t been rearrested, so I would definitely say it was definitely a life-changer for me.”

While recidivism rates are high , programs, like Date With A Dad, prove to help combat them. After the dance, the fathers in the film meet again to debrief. During that session, many acknowledged how impactful those few hours were on their lives. One father cited that as the day he knew he couldn’t return to prison “because of the power I felt that day.”

Many of the men also noted that those moments bonding with their daughters allowed them to redefine who they were. The bond that they had with their daughters wouldn’t be easy to rebuild, but those moments gave something for them to fight for. It reminded them of everything that they had waiting for them when they got outside of prison, which redirected their path.

The post Netflix’s “Daughters” Shows The Power Of Father-Daughter Relationships appeared first on 21Ninety .