This series of posts presents the brilliant and timely scholarship of Steven Howard, a businessman and social commentator currently living in Australia. With tremendous dedication, thorough research, and insightful analysis, he has written a volume of essays about the “Adult Child Estrangement” movement. We are reproducing his work, with full attribution.
This movement must be on the radar of every freedom fighter. It is a deliberate project of the Far Left, as yet another means to dismantle the nuclear family. In the larger picture, it is part of the Left’s “Long March Through the Institutions.” It employs tactics that were explicitly used in the Maoist Cultural Revolution to coercively suppress dissent, and to “brainwash” the dissenter into conformity with the Left’s narrative.
Here is an example, from Part 27 of Mr. Howard’s series, “From the Cultural Revolution to Therapy Culture: Reframing Familial Bonds:”
“… during China’s Cultural Revolution children were encouraged to reject and even betray their parents if they were deemed politically deviant. Maoist ideology—as reflected in Mao’s ‘Little Red Book’—framed familial ties as secondary to ideological allegiance. This frequently led young activists, particularly members of the Red Guard, to see their own families as threats to progress. This process was not driven solely by personal grievances—it was cultivated by the State, which incentivised public denunciation and reinforced the belief that traditional family structures were barriers to political and social enlightenment.
“A similar dynamic can be seen to be at play in modern Estrangement Ideology. Instead of political purity, the framework has shifted toward psychological and emotional purity, where concepts like ‘boundaries’, ‘toxic relationships’ and ‘generational trauma’ function as contemporary justifications for severing family ties.”
This ideology has fed and exacerbated the various forms of ideological warfare that have been waged in recent years, especially against “older generations:”
… “Vaccine skeptics” are a public health hazard.
… “Election deniers” are a threat to democracy.
… Peaceful J6 demonstrators are “insurrectionists.”
… MAGA supporters are “extremists”
… People who do not accept “gender fluidity” are “phobic.”
If our families get broken and our children are sent adrift, then a power-hungry technocracy will have ample opportunities to take over our lives. We will become “wards of the State, from cradle to grave.”
Of course, some people unfortunately do have valid claims against bad parents, and in those cases, estrangement could be necessary. But as a movement, “Adult Child Estrangement” is a tool for tyranny, and must be put under public scrutiny.
We will start with Mr. Howard’s Introduction to his series:
Estrangement Ideology: An Introduction to the Series
A series of articles aimed at broadening understanding the shift in family estrangement for parents and others involved.
“Estrangement—the severance of familial relationships—has existed throughout history. Families have always encountered conflicts that, at times, led to permanent or prolonged separation. However, in recent years, a new and distinct phenomenon has emerged: estrangement as an ideological movement rather than a situational or personal decision.
“I wrote this Estrangement Ideology series of articles to explore the cultural, psychological and ideological forces that contribute to this shift. In some ways, it is a personal journey that started with my own family estrangement, which led to an exploration of the online Estranged Adult Child communities on which I have drawn extensively to inform the analysis and provide examples to illustrate the arguments.
Note: that all of this quoted material was available publicly without the need to sign on to the platforms concerned nor join any public or private groups on them. The series provides an explanatory critique of how estrangement has evolved from an unfortunate but natural occurrence into a socially validated and often encouraged response to family conflict.
Why This Series?
“For many parents, the estrangement by their adult children is a bewildering, highly stressful and painful experience. Unlike historical cases of estrangement—often resulting from severe abuse or extreme circumstances—many modern estrangements seem to occur without a clear inciting event. Even where there is an inciting event or actual abuse, the responses to it may be shaped by broader cultural narratives, therapy language and online communities that reinforce estrangement as an act of personal self preservation or empowerment rather than relational breakdown.
“This series is intended to serve as both an analytical critique and a guide for those trying to make sense of this new landscape. By exploring the ideological underpinnings of modern estrangement, it hopes to offer some insight into why family bonds are increasingly fragile, how estrangement is reinforced and what parents can do to protect themselves emotionally, legally and financially.
“The goal is not to force reconciliation where it is impossible but to help parents understand the rules and broader forces at play so they can make informed decisions about how to move forward.
Who Is This Series For?
“This series is written primarily for parents who have been affected by estrangement, but it is also valuable for:
- Family members seeking to understand the modern estrangement phenomenon
- Mental health professionals interested in exploring alternative perspectives on estrangement and reconciliation
- Estranged Adult Children open to consider a different perspective on estrangement and its consequences to parents, society at large and themselves
- Anyone questioning the dominant narratives surrounding family estrangement.
Summary of the Estrangement Ideology Series
“After the first three articles, which outline the basics of Estrangement Ideology, the remaining articles were written as topics presented themselves to me and, while they roughly grouped into themes as my thinking progressed, this is by no means a fully logical ordering of the actual ideas presented.
About the author:
Steven Howard
@stxian
“A New Zealander living in Australia since 2010, working as a business writer and bid manager. Opposing the NWO, I seek truth in the matrix of lies.”