Fathers 4 Justice Buckingham Palace protest
| Founded | 2001 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Matt O'Connor (activist) |
| Location |
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| Website | http://www.fathers-4-justice.org |
Fathers 4 Justice (or F4J) is a fathers’ rights organisation in the United Kingdom. Founded in 2001, the group aims to gain public and parliamentary support for changes in UK legislation on fathers' rights, mainly using stunts and protests, often conducted in costume.
Former F4J members, who do not agree with Matt O'Connor's leadership, such as Paul Manning, formed the New Fathers 4 Justice group, in 2008.
Fathers 4 Justice was founded in the UK by Matt O'Connor, a marketing consultant.
Fathers for Justice's stated aim is to champion the causes of equal parenting, family law reform, and equal contact for divorced parents with children. It is best known for its campaigning techniques of protest stunts, with participants often dressed as comic book superheroes, and frequently climbing public buildings, bridges, and monuments.
Stunts have included supporters forcibly entering courts dressed in Father Christmas outfits, putting the Government's Minister for Children in handcuffs, and group member Jason Hatch climbing onto Buckingham Palace dressed as Batman. They have also protested by handcuffing two other government ministers. However, the group and the couple behind it, Matt and Nadine O'Connor, have been criticised by Caroline Nokes, who claims the organization has a policy of bullying, intimidation, and harassment, which, according to Nokes, has included threats of rape, death, and torture being made against her. Former members of the group have claimed Fathers4Justice/the Matt O' Conner family, have "lost its way" by being sidetracked from reforming family law, and descending into personal attacks on twitter, libel (for which they were sued,) and less substantiated claims of illegal acts such as putting an MP under surveillance and tracking her movements with a GPS tracking unit.
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