Men Aren't Needed In Raising Kids?

    I spent my day deeply provoked by thoughts of what it means for children to grow up in homes without fathers vs. children who grow up with one. My spouse shared a meme with a young boy indulging in bad activities and it was captioned, "When Women Try To Raise Sons Without A Man". Needless to say, commentators couldn't wait to sound off on this subject mater. I appreciated reading the different points of views. Of course, all single parent upbringing doesn't result in a son being in prison or dead from gang affiliation. However, how can we dismiss the importance of fathers involvement in child rearing within the black community? We have been bombarded by statistics of how children raised with absent parents are impacted in various ways. Disclaimer: This post isn't about bashing or downing people who raise children singlehanded, it's very common and many people have examples of this working out well. This post is to educate on some of the information out on this subject. Children with fathers present are less likely to have legal troubles, less likely to receive bad grades, show less high risk behavior, have more stable work careers, better language development, and experience more stability in their home. It's important to know that it doesn't have to be strictly a "father" but it can be a father figure or someone that can teach certain values to the child. Fathers, particularly can provide a different type of love than mothers and sociologists believe that a father's parenting style can help contribute to a child's future independence and problem solving skills. When fathers are absent, it can hurt the child emotionally too. Sometimes, it appears easy to not want to discuss the importance of fathers being involved due to some men being deadbeats and some women being too bitter to deal with an ex. Our children are the only ones that lose when parents can't co-parent effectively. Hopefully, more education and the rise of more federal government programs trying to incorporate fathers more will help bridge the gap. Maybe, more people can even be more open minded and not so easily offended by the topic of children benefitting from having two parents to depend on when it's possible. When it's not possible, it doesn't mean things will be devastating for everyone. The environment of a child can be strong enough, and cause them to go on to do great things despite their upbringing! 

Until Next Time,

Dx3

Sources:

https://www.focusonthefamily.com/family-qa/the-significance-of-a-fathers-influence/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/06/13/why-dads-matter-according-science/377125001/

https://childandfamilyresearch.utexas.edu/5-things-you-should-know-about-importance-fathers



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