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All of the praises being sung today for those men striving to be there for their children are justly earned.
Fatherlessness didn't strike me as an event. It was just my life.
Fifteen million U.S. children, or 1 in 3, live without a father.
In 1960 just 11 percent of American children lived in homes without fathers.
Children in father-absent homes are almost four times more likely to be poor.
In 2011, 12 percent of children in married-couple families were living in poverty,
compared to 44 percent of children in mother-only families.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services states,
“Fatherless children are at a dramatically greater risk of drug and alcohol abuse.”
The statistical data showed that a 1% increase in the proportion of single-parent families in a neighborhood
is associated with a 3% increase in an adolescent’s level of violence.
- 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes (US Dept. Of Health/Census) – 5 times the average.
- 90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes – 32 times the average.
- 85% of all children who show behavior disorders come from fatherless homes – 20 times the average. (Center for Disease Control)
- 80% of rapists with anger problems come from fatherless homes –14 times the average. (Justice & Behavior, Vol 14, p. 403-26)
- 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes – 9 times the average. (National Principals Association Report)
Provide, Nurture and Guide.
But that is hard. It is easier to just leave.
As I wrote yesterday, we are becoming the detached, impersonal culture ... the Me Generation.
What do we know about such men? Not much. They are apparently quite common.
Society condemns them. Yet fixing the blame never fixes the problem.
Our society wants men to accept obligations of fatherhood, but they are not respected for doing so.
In the media,
fathers are mostly portrayed as clueless, hapless buffoons - or, occasionally, as violent abusers.
Just look at how far the father of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD fell in the "sequel" GO SET A WATCHMAN
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Whether
a father is apart from his child as a result of divorce, non-marital
childbirth or job relocation, his absence impacts the child and our
society beyond what we can observe at the moment. - See more at:
http://goodmenproject.com/families/the-critical-impact-of-non-residential-fathers-on-their-daughters-kcon/#sthash.e6mhcPLB.dpuf
Hi Roland ... so important to make us all aware - we need our fathers, and we need our men to be important in our lives, and to set parental examples ... my thoughts to all and may everyone have a peaceful Father's Day ...
ReplyDeleteWith thoughts -Hilary
Had a grim grueling Father's Day. But I did survive it!!
DeleteHaving both a mother and a father stabilizes the family. Those numbers don't lie. The downward spiral of our society is directly linked to broken families.
ReplyDeleteOur broken society stems from our broken families as you say!
DeleteI just posted a long comment that wouldn't post. So testing.
ReplyDeleteOk, so it worked. What I said was and I will make this one shorter: The picture of the little boy is the saddest thing to touch my heart, among so many sad events lately. Then I said: I wish this post could be more widely published, millions need to read it. And I closed with: I will be thinking of you today and give a hug to the Midnight kitty.
ReplyDeleteMidnight thought I had been abducted by aliens I was gone so long Sunday: one long blood run after another!!
DeleteI wish this post could be seen by those to whom it would have an impact on. Thanks for liking it! Sorry Blogger made it hard for you to comment! :-(
I was lucky to grow up with a pretty good father. He didn't have as much time for us as we would have liked but when you are supporting 8 children you work a lot. As a writer it has been very important to me to create good, loving fathers. I can remember, in my younger years, dating men who would say they had kids that they didn't have much to do with. That was an automatic disqualifier for me. Who wants to spend time with a man like that?
ReplyDelete@Kathleen01930 Blog
My Samuel McCord and Wolf Howl adopt lost children to raise as their own. In that way, McCord by chance adopted his biological son! Long story short: angels don't get pregnant in the same fashion as humans do. (At least in my mythos!) :-)
DeleteMy father was young, self-centered and I found early on that we didn't get along at all. First of all I was first born (not the boy he wanted) and I was feisty and questioned him on many things he said. I don't miss him, but having to deal with a uncaring but dominating father made me a stronger person today. He doted on my brother and even my younger sister. But for me, there was poison between us.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry to hear that. :-( Your father apparently was the prototype for the modern father!
DeleteUnfortunately, I can speak to this from first-hand experience. My first son's father died when he was only three, so he had a hard time as a young boy. Luckily my second one didn't suffer in this way, and son #1 has come to terms with his loss.
ReplyDeleteLee, your first son made it because of you and your love -- as I made it because of my own mother. :-) Sorry that you lost your husband so young. :-(
DeleteSorry, my friends, but I have worked 14 hours so far today and tonight, and I have just been called out another blood run. I promise to reply to all of you when the madness ends. Whew!
ReplyDelete