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Blacks struggle with 72 percent unwed mothers rate
AP ^

Posted on 11/08/2010 10:21:24 AM PST by roses of sharon

***

The black community's 72 percent rate eclipses that of most other groups: 17 percent of Asians, 29 percent of whites, 53 percent of Hispanics and 66 percent of Native Americans were born to unwed mothers in 2008, the most recent year for which government figures are available. The rate for the overall U.S. population was 41 percent.

This issue entered the public consciousness in 1965, when a now famous government report by future senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan described a "tangle of pathology" among blacks that fed a 24 percent black "illegitimacy" rate. The white rate then was 4 percent.

Many accused Moynihan, who was white, of "blaming the victim:" of saying that black behavior, not racism, was the main cause of black problems. That dynamic persists. Most talk about the 72 percent has come from conservative circles; when influential blacks like Bill Cosby have spoken out about it, they have been all but shouted down by liberals saying that a lack of equal education and opportunity are the true root of the problem.

Even in black churches, "nobody talks about it," Carroll says. "It's like some big secret."

***

There are simple arguments for why so many black women have children without marriage.

The legacy of segregation, the logic goes, means blacks are more likely to attend inferior schools. This creates a high proportion of blacks unprepared to compete for jobs in today's economy, where middle-class industrial work for unskilled laborers has largely disappeared.

The drug epidemic sent disproportionate numbers of black men to prison, and crushed the job opportunities for those who served their time. Women don't want to marry men who can't provide for their families, and welfare laws created a financial incentive for poor mothers to stay single.

***

(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society
KEYWORDS: babies; bastards; cohabitation; moralabsolutes; unwed
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To: roses of sharon
It should be unacceptable to all...but what can be done?

I've posted this story before, and I'm sure I will again.

In the late '90s I was working for a Fortune 500 company. One of my coworkers was a young black woman, let's call her Jane. Remember now, this was the height of the Clinton years. Jane had a good job, was not a single mother, and was finishing her college degree at the local university. As I got to know her, I found that she was in favor of the death penalty, against abortion, against the homosexual agenda, etc. In other words, she was just like us - with one exception. She was a straight-ticket Democrat voter.

So, one day, out of curiosity, I took her through the entire Republican platform at the time. She agreed with virtually everything -- even the conservative position on affirmative action, when asked if she thought that a person should get a job just because of the color of their skin. Then, I told her that she had just agreed to the conservative world-view, and I asked her if she would then consider voting Republican in the next election. She said that no, she would not vote Republican under any circumstances.

Now I was confused. I asked her why not, and her answer shocked and stunned me.

"Because Republicans hate black people."

That was it, plain and simple. For all twenty-something years of her life, she'd been told literally thousands of times that Republicans hate black people -- and she'd never ONCE had a Republican tell her otherwise.

When a Republican candidate skips the NAACP convention, they do it because they see it as pointless to go get yelled at. On urban radio (a far more powerful medium among blacks than virtually any white people realize), it gets played as "so-and-so hates blacks so much he wouldn't even show up at the NAACP convention." When a Republican votes against an entitlement program on the grounds that it is fiscally reckless, it's spun as "they hate blacks so much, they want you to live on the street." When a Republican opposes affirmative action, it's not because we desire a truly colorblind society, but because we hate blacks so much that we want to make sure that they can never get a decent job.

In the black community, these issues are NEVER debated on their merits. They are discussed ONLY in terms of how it shows that Republicans hate blacks.

Until we start making some headway into that discussion, blacks will continue to vote 90% Democrat. Who can blame them?

61 posted on 11/08/2010 11:21:29 AM PST by Terabitten ("Don't retreat. RELOAD!!" -Sarah Palin)
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To: roses of sharon
"My Momma told me I'm the Breadwinner for the Family."

Yes, this is a national disgrace that affects us all. I hope the current Congress can have plenty of preparatory meetings about this and definitely push for major welfare reform after 2012. The cultural shift back to some degree of normalcy is a whole other topic, but somehow has to change. It's civilized or uncivilized, it's your call America. . .

62 posted on 11/08/2010 11:24:00 AM PST by Art in Idaho (Conservatism is the only hope for Western Civilization.)
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To: LightningStriker2010

True... but this article was not about white babies.

LLS


63 posted on 11/08/2010 11:24:07 AM PST by LibLieSlayer (WOLVERINES!)
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To: Art in Idaho
As an aside, seems I'm seeing more interracial couples recently. Is this "cool" now since Obama? Any stats on this?

What difference does it make? I'm white, and I have three daughters. I'd rather see all three of them marry a smart, motivated, college-educated black, Hispanic, or Asian man than a white loser POS.

64 posted on 11/08/2010 11:27:36 AM PST by Terabitten ("Don't retreat. RELOAD!!" -Sarah Palin)
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To: roses of sharon

As with any parents, blacks love their children. Vouchers is the perfect way to show the sincerity of Republicans to WALK THE TALK. Milton Friedman was a proponent of school vouchers back in the 1970s. He’s still right.

The black family has been systematically dismantled through liberal public policy over the last 60 years. It is time that the truth is told: the DemonRat Party is not their friend. But don’t go in with guns blazing yet. Give help. Gain respect. Earn their trust. THEN, and only then, offer a different vision, a vision of individual freedom, self-reliance, quality education, prosperity, and strong family units. Brett Schundler did that in Jersey City, NJ and it was successful. Why he didn’t follow through is beyond me. Perhaps the Newark experiment (the Facebook founder) will become a model program. You have to get around the teachers unions to get anything done.


65 posted on 11/08/2010 11:32:11 AM PST by SC_Pete
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To: Terabitten

I agree.

And it will not change by Republicans thinking that if they just have more minority reps in Congress that that will help?

Nonsense.

Minorities like Democrats ONLY because they believe that federal programs, liberals, mommy = love.


66 posted on 11/08/2010 11:35:24 AM PST by roses of sharon (I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13)
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To: Terabitten

Thanks for nipping that in the bud. The most dedicated family man I know is a black guy I grew up with. It’s not about race because the idea of sex before marriage permeates just about every area society these days, except the very religious. When you get down to it it is a fundamental question of how we approach freedom that came with the sexual revolution—responsibly or irresponsibly. Personally, I’m glad I don’t live in the sexually repressed world of, say, the 1950s, but I know that whoring around and having kids out of wedlock isn’t a good idea either. Amazing how many people of my generation can’t grasp that.


67 posted on 11/08/2010 11:39:21 AM PST by Callahan
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To: Terabitten
As an aside, seems I'm seeing more interracial couples recently. Is this "cool" now since Obama? Any stats on this?

What difference does it make? I'm white, and I have three daughters. I'd rather see all three of them marry a smart, motivated, college-educated black, Hispanic, or Asian man than a white loser POS.

I agree.

68 posted on 11/08/2010 11:42:34 AM PST by Art in Idaho (Conservatism is the only hope for Western Civilization.)
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To: roses of sharon

Only 1/3rd of boys without fathers end up in the Criminal Justice system.


69 posted on 11/08/2010 11:45:41 AM PST by Uncle Miltie (0bama thought he'd find "common ground" on 0bamaCare because of ROMNEYCARE!)
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To: roses of sharon
They aren't "struggling" with anything except make-believe grievances. The people that have to pay for these multi-generational criminal bastards are struggling.


Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.

70 posted on 11/08/2010 11:45:48 AM PST by The Comedian (I really missed you. Next time, I'll adjust for windage.)
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To: Fletcher J

Yes, I know. We put our 3 boys thru college, it was a struggle. It seems that if you play by the rules you are penalized. We are the chumps.


71 posted on 11/08/2010 11:54:20 AM PST by brytlea (Jesus loves me, this I know.)
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To: Terabitten

And how do you propose we compete with people who are willing to lie and hand out dollars? The truth and a message that you have to work hard doesn’t seem to be very enticing.


72 posted on 11/08/2010 11:59:46 AM PST by brytlea (Jesus loves me, this I know.)
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To: roses of sharon

Gonna chew up some bandwidth, but here goes:

http://www.photius.com/feminocracy/facts_on_fatherless_kids.html

Sexual activity. In a study of 700 adolescents, researchers found that “compared to families with two natural parents living in the home, adolescents from single-parent families have been found to engage in greater and earlier sexual activity.”
Source: Carol W. Metzler, et al. “The Social Context for Risky Sexual Behavior Among Adolescents,” Journal of Behavioral Medicine 17 (1994).

A myriad of maladies. Fatherless children are at a dramatically greater risk of drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness, suicide, poor educational performance, teen pregnancy, and criminality.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Center for Health Statistics, Survey on Child Health, Washington, DC, 1993.

Drinking problems. Teenagers living in single-parent households are more likely to abuse alcohol and at an earlier age compared to children reared in two-parent households
Source: Terry E. Duncan, Susan C. Duncan and Hyman Hops, “The Effects of Family Cohesiveness and Peer Encouragement on the Development of Adolescent Alcohol Use: A Cohort-Sequential Approach to the Analysis of Longitudinal Data,” Journal of Studies on Alcohol 55 (1994).

Drug Use: “...the absence of the father in the home affects significantly the behavior of adolescents and results in the greater use of alcohol and marijuana.”
Source: Deane Scott Berman, “Risk Factors Leading to Adolescent Substance Abuse,” Adolescence 30 (1995)

Sexual abuse. A study of 156 victims of child sexual abuse found that the majority of the children came from disrupted or single-parent homes; only 31 percent of the children lived with both biological parents. Although stepfamilies make up only about 10 percent of all families, 27 percent of the abused children lived with either a stepfather or the mother’s boyfriend.
Source: Beverly Gomes-Schwartz, Jonathan Horowitz, and Albert P. Cardarelli, “Child Sexual Abuse Victims and Their Treatment,” U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Child Abuse. Researchers in Michigan determined that “49 percent of all child abuse cases are committed by single mothers.”
Source: Joan Ditson and Sharon Shay, “A Study of Child Abuse in Lansing, Michigan,” Child Abuse and Neglect, 8 (1984).

Deadly predictions. A family structure index — a composite index based on the annual rate of children involved in divorce and the percentage of families with children present that are female-headed — is a strong predictor of suicide among young adult and adolescent white males.
Source: Patricia L. McCall and Kenneth C. Land, “Trends in White Male Adolescent, Young-Adult and Elderly Suicide: Are There Common Underlying Structural Factors?” Social Science Research 23, 1994.

High risk. Fatherless children are at dramatically greater risk of suicide.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Center for Health Statistics, Survey on Child Health, Washington, DC, 1993.

Suicidal Tendencies. In a study of 146 adolescent friends of 26 adolescent suicide victims, teens living in single-parent families are not only more likely to commit suicide but also more likely to suffer from psychological disorders, when compared to teens living in intact families.
Source: David A. Brent, et al. “Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in Peers of Adolescent Suicide Victims: Predisposing Factors and Phenomenology.” Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 34, 1995.

Confused identities. Boys who grow up in father-absent homes are more likely that those in father-present homes to have trouble establishing appropriate sex roles and gender identity.
Source: P.L. Adams, J.R. Milner, and N.A. Schrepf, Fatherless Children, New York, Wiley Press, 1984.

Psychiatric Problems. In 1988, a study of preschool children admitted to New Orleans hospitals as psychiatric patients over a 34-month period found that nearly 80 percent came from fatherless homes.
Source: Jack Block, et al. “Parental Functioning and the Home Environment in Families of Divorce,” Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 27 (1988)

Emotional distress. Children living with a never-married mother are more likely to have been treated for emotional problems.
Source: L. Remez, “Children Who Don’t Live with Both Parents Face Behavioral Problems,” Family Planning Perspectives (January/February 1992).

Uncooperative kids. Children reared by a divorced or never-married mother are less cooperative and score lower on tests of intelligence than children reared in intact families. Statistical analysis of the behavior and intelligence of these children revealed “significant detrimental effects” of living in a female-headed household. Growing up in a female-headed household remained a statistical predictor of behavior problems even after adjusting for differences in family income.
Source: Greg L. Duncan, Jeanne Brooks-Gunn and Pamela Kato Klebanov, “Economic Deprivation and Early Childhood Development,” Child Development 65 (1994).
Unstable families, unstable lives. Compared to peers in two-parent homes, black children in single-parent households are more likely to engage in troublesome behavior, and perform poorly in school.
Source: Tom Luster and Hariette Pipes McAdoo, “Factors Related to the Achievement and Adjustment of Young African-American Children.” Child Development 65 (1994): 1080-1094

Beyond class lines. Even controlling for variations across groups in parent education, race and other child and family factors, 18- to 22-year-olds from disrupted families were twice as likely to have poor relationships with their mothers and fathers, to show high levels of emotional distress or problem behavior, [and] to have received psychological help.
Source: Nicholas Zill, Donna Morrison, and Mary Jo Coiro, “Long Term Effects of Parental Divorce on Parent-Child Relationships, Adjustment and Achievement in Young Adulthood.” Journal of Family Psychology 7 (1993).

Fatherly influence. Children with fathers at home tend to do better in school, are less prone to depression and are more successful in relationships. Children from one-parent families achieve less and get into trouble more than children from two parent families.
Source: One Parent Families and Their Children: The School’s Most Significant Minority, conducted by The Consortium for the Study of School Needs of Children from One Parent Families, co sponsored by the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the Institute for Development of Educational Activities, a division of the Charles F. Kettering Foundation, Arlington, VA., 1980

Divorce disorders. Children whose parents separate are significantly more likely to engage in early sexual activity, abuse drugs, and experience conduct and mood disorders. This effect is especially strong for children whose parents separated when they were five years old or younger.
Source: David M. Fergusson, John Horwood and Michael T. Lynsky, “Parental Separation, Adolescent Psychopathology, and Problem Behaviors,” Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 33 (1944).

Troubled marriages, troubled kids. Compared to peers living with both biological parents, sons and daughters of divorced or separated parents exhibited significantly more conduct problems. Daughters of divorced or separated mothers evidenced significantly higher rates of internalizing problems, such as anxiety or depression.
Source: Denise B. Kandel, Emily Rosenbaum and Kevin Chen, “Impact of Maternal Drug Use and Life Experiences on Preadolescent Children Born to Teenage Mothers,” Journal of Marriage and the Family56 (1994).

Hungry for love. “Father hunger” often afflicts boys age one and two whose fathers are suddenly and permanently absent. Sleep disturbances, such as trouble falling asleep, nightmares, and night terrors frequently begin within one to three months after the father leaves home.
Source: Alfred A. Messer, “Boys Father Hunger: The Missing Father Syndrome,” Medical Aspects of Human Sexuality, January 1989.

Disturbing news: Children of never-married mothers are more than twice as likely to have been treated for an emotional or behavioral problem.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Center for Health Statistics, National Health Interview Survey, Hyattsille, MD, 1988

Poor and in trouble: A 1988 Department of Health and Human Services study found that at every income level except the very highest (over $50,000 a year), children living with never-married mothers were more likely than their counterparts in two-parent families to have been expelled or suspended from school, to display emotional problems, and to engage in antisocial behavior.
Source: James Q. Wilson, “In Loco Parentis: Helping Children When Families Fail Them,” The Brookings Review, Fall 1993.

Fatherless aggression: In a longitudinal study of 1,197 fourth-grade students, researchers observed “greater levels of aggression in boys from mother-only households than from boys in mother-father households.”
Source: N. Vaden-Kierman, N. Ialongo, J. Pearson, and S. Kellam, “Household Family Structure and Children’s Aggressive Behavior: A Longitudinal Study of Urban Elementary School Children,” Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 23, no. 5 (1995).

Act now, pay later: “Children from mother-only families have less of an ability to delay gratification and poorer impulse control (that is, control over anger and sexual gratification.) These children also have a weaker sense of conscience or sense of right and wrong.”
Source: E.M. Hetherington and B. Martin, “Family Interaction” in H.C. Quay and J.S. Werry (eds.), Psychopathological Disorders of Childhood. (New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1979)

Crazy victims: Eighty percent of adolescents in psychiatric hospitals come from broken homes.
Source: J.B. Elshtain, “Family Matters...”, Christian Century, July 1993.

Duh to dead: “The economic consequences of a [father’s] absence are often accompanied by psychological consequences, which include higher-than-average levels of youth suicide, low intellectual and education performance, and higher-than-average rates of mental illness, violence and drug use.”
Source: William Galston, Elaine Kamarck. Progressive Policy Institute. 1993

Expelled: Nationally, 15.3 percent of children living with a never-married mother and 10.7 percent of children living with a divorced mother have been expelled or suspended from school, compared to only 4.4 percent of children living with both biological parents.
Source: Debra Dawson, “Family Structure...”, Journal of Marriage and Family, No. 53. 1991.

Violent rejection: Kids who exhibited violent behavior at school were 11 times as likely not to live with their fathers and six times as likely to have parents who were not married. Boys from families with absent fathers are at higher risk for violent behavior than boys from intact families.
Source: J.L. Sheline (et al.), “Risk Factors...”, American Journal of Public Health, No. 84. 1994.

That crowd: Children without fathers or with stepfathers were less likely to have friends who think it’s important to behave properly in school. They also exhibit more problems with behavior and in achieving goals.
Source: Nicholas Zill, C. W. Nord, “Running in Place,” Child Trends, Inc. 1994.

Likeliest to succeed: Kids who live with both biological parents at age 14 are significantly more likely to graduate from high school than those kids who live with a single parent, a parent and step-parent, or neither parent.
Source: G.D. Sandefur (et al.), “The Effects of Parental Marital Status...”, Social Forces, September 1992.

Worse to bad: Children in single-parent families tend to score lower on standardized tests and to receive lower grades in school. Children in single-parent families are nearly twice as likely to drop out of school as children from two-parent families.
Source: J.B. Stedman (et al.), “Dropping Out,” Congressional Research Service Report No 88-417. 1988.

College odds: Children from disrupted families are 20 percent more unlikely to attend college than kids from intact, two-parent families.
Source: J. Wallerstein, Family Law Quarterly, 20. (Summer 1986)

On their own: Kids living in single-parent homes or in step-families report lower educational expectations on the part of their parents, less parental monitoring of school work, and less overall social supervision than children from intact families.
Source: N.M. Astore and S. McLanahan, Americican Sociological Review, No. 56 (1991)

Double-risk: Fatherless children — kids living in homes without a stepfather or without contact with their biological father — are twice as likely to drop out of school.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Survey on Child Health. (1993)

Repeat, repeat: Nationally, 29.7 percent of children living with a never-married mother and 21.5 percent of children living with a divorced mother have repeated at least one grade in school, compared to 11.6 percent of children living with both biological parents.
Source: Debra Dawson, “Family Structure and Children’s Well-Being,” Journals of Marriage and Family, No. 53. (1991).

Underpaid high achievers: Children from low-income, two-parent families outperform students from high-income, single-parent homes. Almost twice as many high achievers come from two-parent homes as one-parent homes.
Source: “One-Parent Families and Their Children;” Charles F. Kettering Foundation (1990).

Dadless and dumb: At least one-third of children experiencing a parental separation “demonstrated a significant decline in academic performance” persisting at least three years.
Source: L.M.C. Bisnairs (et al.), American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, no. 60 (1990)

Son of Solo: According to a recent study of young, non-custodial fathers who are behind on child support payments, less than half of these men were living with their own father at age 14.

Slip-sliding: Among black children between the ages of 6 to 9 years old, black children in mother-only households scored significantly lower on tests of intellectual ability, than black children living with two parents.
Source: Luster and McAdoo, Child Development 65. 1994.

Dadless dropouts: After taking into account race, socio-economic status, sex, age and ability, high school students from single-parent households were 1.7 times more likely to drop out than were their corresponding counterparts living with both biological parents.
Source: Ralph McNeal, Sociology of Education 88. 1995.

Takes two: Families in which both the child’s biological or adoptive parents are present in the household show significantly higher levels of parental involvement in the child’s school activities than do mother-only families or step-families.
Source: Zill and Nord, “Running in Place.” Child Trends. 1994

Con garden: Forty-three percent of prison inmates grew up in a single-parent household — 39 percent with their mothers, 4 percent with their fathers — and an additional 14 percent lived in households without either biological parent. Another 14 percent had spent at last part of their childhood in a foster home, agency or other juvenile institution.
Source: US Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of State Prison Inmates. 1991

Criminal moms, criminal kids: The children of single teenage mothers are more at risk for later criminal behavior. In the case of a teenage mother, the absence of a father also increases the risk of harshness from the mother.
Source: M. Mourash, L. Rucker, Crime and Delinquency 35. 1989.

Rearing rapists: Seventy-two percent of adolescent murderers grew up without fathers. Sixty percent of America’s rapists grew up the same way.
Source: D. Cornell (et al.), Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 5. 1987. And N. Davidson, “Life Without Father,” Policy Review. 1990.

Crime and poverty: The proportion of single-parent households in a community predicts its rate of violent crime and burglary, but the community’s poverty level does not.
Source: D.A. Smith and G.R. Jarjoura, “Social Structure and Criminal Victimization,” Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 25. 1988.

Marriage matters: Only 13 percent of juvenile delinquents come from families in which the biological mother and father are married to each other. By contract, 33 percent have parents who are either divorced or separated and 44 percent have parents who were never married.
Source: Wisconsin Dept. of Health and Social Services, April 1994.

No good time: Compared to boys from intact, two-parent families, teenage boys from disrupted families are not only more likely to be incarcerated for delinquent offenses, but also to manifest worse conduct while incarcerated.
Source: M Eileen Matlock et al., “Family Correlates of Social Skills...” Adolescence 29. 1994.

Count ‘em: Seventy percent of juveniles in state reform institutions grew up in single- or no-parent situations.
Source: Alan Beck et al., Survey of Youth in Custody, 1987, US Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1988.

The Main Thing: The relationship between family structure and crime is so strong that controlling for family configuration erases the relationship between race and crime and between low income and crime. This conclusion shows up time and again in the literature.
Source: E. Kamarck, William Galston, Putting Children First, Progressive Policy Inst. 1990

Examples: Teenage fathers are more likely than their childless peers to commit and be convicted of illegal activity, and their offenses are of a more serious nature.
Source: M.A. Pirog-Good, “Teen Father and the Child Support System,” in Paternity Establishment, Institute for research on Poverty, Univ. of Wisconsin. 1992.

The ‘hood The likelihood that a young male will engage in criminal activity doubles if he is raised without a father and triples if he lives in a neighborhood with a high concentration of single-parent families.
Source: A. Anne Hill, June O’Neill, “Underclass Behaviors in the United States,” CUNY, Baruch College. 1993

Bringing the war back home The odds that a boy born in America in 1974 will be murdered are higher than the odds that a serviceman in World War II would be killed in combat.
Source: US Sen. Phil Gramm, 1995

Get ahead at home and at work: Fathers who cared for their children intellectual development and their adolescent’s social development were more like to advance in their careers, compared to men who weren’t involved in such activities.
Source: J. Snarey, How Fathers Care for the Next Generation.Harvard Univ. Press.

Diaper dads: In 1991, about 20 percent of preschool children were cared for by their fathers — both married and single. In 1988, the number was 15 percent.
Source: M. O’Connell, “Where’s Papa? Father’s Role in Child Care,” Population Reference Bureau. 1993.

Without leave: Sixty-three percent of 1500 CEOs and human resource directors said it was not reasonable for a father to take a leave after the birth of a child.
Source: J.H. Pleck, “Family Supportive Employer Policies,” Center for research in Women. 1991.

Get a job: The number of men who complain that work conflicts with their family responsibilities rose from 12 percent in 1977 to 72 percent in 1989. Meanwhile, 74 percent of men prefer a “daddy track” job to a “fast track” job.
Source: James Levine, The Fatherhood Project.

Long-distance dads: Twenty-six percent of absent fathers live in a different state than their children.
Source: US Bureau of the Census, Statistical Brief . 1991.

Cool Dad of the Week: Among fathers who maintain contact with their children after a divorce, the pattern of the relationship between father-and-child changes. They begin to behave more like relatives than like parents. Instead of helping with homework, nonresident dads are more likely to take the kids shopping, to the movies, or out to dinner. Instead of providing steady advice and guidance, divorced fathers become “treat dads.”
Source: F. Furstenberg, A. Cherlin, Divided Families . Harvard Univ. Press. 1991.

Older’s not wiser: While 57 percent of unwed dads with kids no older than two visit their children more than once a week, by the time the kid’s seven and a half, only 23 percent are in frequent contact with their children.
Source: R. Lerman and Theodora Ooms, Young Unwed Fathers . 1993.

Ten years after: Ten years after the breakup of a marriage, more than two-thirds of kids report not having seen their father for a year.
Source: National Commission on Children, Speaking of Kids. 1991.

No such address: More than half the kids who don’t live with their father have never been in their father’s house.
Source: F. Furstenberg, A. Cherlin, Divided Families. Harvard Univ. Press. 1991.

Dadless years: About 40 percent of the kids living in fatherless homes haven’t seen their dads in a year or more. Of the rest, only one in five sleeps even one night a month at the father’s home. And only one in six sees their father once or more per week.
Source: F. Furstenberg, A. Cherlin, Divided Families. Harvard Univ. Press. 1991.

Measuring up? According to a 1992 Gallup poll, more than 50 percent of all adults agreed that fathers today spend less time with their kids than their fathers did with them.
Source: Gallup national random sample conducted for the National Center for Fathering, April 1992.

Father unknown. Of kids living in single-mom households, 35 percent never see their fathers, and another 24 percent see their fathers less than once a month.
Source: J.A. Selzer, “Children’s Contact with Absent Parents,” Journal of Marriage and the Family, 50 (1988).

Missed contact: In a study of 304 young adults, those whose parents divorced after they left home had significantly less contact with their fathers than adult children who parents remained married. Weekly contact with their children dropped from 78 percent for still-married fathers to 44 percent for divorced fathers.
Source: William Aquilino, “Later Life Parental Divorce and Widowhood,” Journal of Marriage and the Family 56. 1994.

Commercial breaks: The amount of time a father spends with his child — one-on-one — averages less than 10 minutes a day.
Source: J. P. Robinson, et al., “The Rhythm of Everyday Life.” Westview Press. 1988

High risk: Overall, more than 75 percent of American children are at risk because of paternal deprivation. Even in two-parent homes, fewer than 25 percent of young boys and girls experience an average of at least one hour a day of relatively individualized contact with their fathers.
Source: Henry Biller, “The Father Factor...” a paper based on presentations during meetings with William Galston, Deputy Director, Domestic Policy, Clinton White House, December 1993 and April 1994.

Knock, knock: Of children age 5 to 14, 1.6 million return home to houses where there is no adult present.
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, “Who’s Minding the Kids?” Statistical Brief. April 1994.

Who said talk’s cheap? Almost 20 percent of sixth- through twelfth-graders have not had a good conversation lasting for at least 10 minutes with at least one of their parents in more than a month.
Source: Peter Benson, “The Troubled Journey.” Search Institute. 1993.

Justified guilt. A 1990 L.A. Times poll found that 57 percent of all fathers and 55 percent of all mothers feel guilty about not spending enough time with their children.
Source: Lynn Smith and Bob Sipchen, “Two Career Family Dilemma,” Los Angeles Times, Aug. 12, 1990.

Who are you, mister? In 1965, parents on average spent approximately 30 hours a week with their kids. By 1985, the amount of time had fallen to 17 hours.
Source: William Mattox, “The Parent Trap.” Policy Review. Winter, 1991.

Waiting Works: Only eight percent of those who finished high school, got married before having a child, and waited until age 20 to have that child were living in poverty in 1992.
Source: William Galston, “Beyond the Murphy Brown Debate.” Institute for Family Values. Dec. 10, 1993.

More Statistics

63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes (Source: U.S. D.H.H.S., Bureau of the Census)
90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes
85% of all children that exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes (Source: Center for Disease Control)
80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes (Source: Criminal Justice & Behavior, Vol 14, p. 403-26, 1978.)
71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes (Source: National Principals Association Report on the State of High Schools.)
75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes (Source: Rainbows for all God`s Children.)
70% of juveniles in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes (Source: U.S. Dept. of Justice, Special Report, Sept 1988)
85% of all youths sitting in prisons grew up in a fatherless home (Source: Fulton Co. Georgia jail populations, Texas Dept. of Corrections 1992)


73 posted on 11/08/2010 12:01:44 PM PST by Uncle Miltie (0bama thought he'd find "common ground" on 0bamaCare because of ROMNEYCARE!)
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To: Callahan

What’s your definition of sexually repressed and whoring around, just so I can get a handle on what the heck you’re talking about.


74 posted on 11/08/2010 12:04:08 PM PST by brytlea (Jesus loves me, this I know.)
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To: roses of sharon

Perhaps if these “black” women closed their legs for starters... and the “black” men who impregnate the ones who can’t, be held accountable and responsible for those child/children they father...

What’s sickening and horrific is the complete and total lack of PERSONAL ACCOUNTABILITY within the sampling of this segment of the U.S. population.


75 posted on 11/08/2010 12:05:06 PM PST by Finop (Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.)
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To: Beagle8U

Welfare pushed by Liberals is the new slavery. They are slaves to the welfare check and we are slaves to working harder and keeping less to pay for it.


76 posted on 11/08/2010 12:06:31 PM PST by No Socialist
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To: roses of sharon

Notice, than while Asian Americans are not noted as the most religiously Conservative Americans and not even predominately Christian, they none the less have the lowest rate of unwed mothers.

CULTURE, CULTURE, CULTURE

Culture dominates these outcomes, and the most influential cultural influences are those that dominate, in this order - our family, friends, and peers. Culture is as inherited as genetics and like genetics is “passed on” and reinforced via the family.

Destroy the family, de-link the individual from it and you reduce the cultural inheritance and influence of the family. American religious Conservatives know this, understand this and work against it - for their own religious reasons. But, THEY don’t own it, and others have their own good reasons for following the good advice that that understanding gives us all.


77 posted on 11/08/2010 12:08:43 PM PST by Wuli
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To: Uncle Miltie
Gonna chew up some bandwidth, but here goes:

Great post. Well worth the bandwidth. Many thanks!

78 posted on 11/08/2010 12:35:27 PM PST by Responsibility2nd (Yes, as a matter of fact, what you do in your bedroom IS my business.)
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To: TASMANIANRED; roses of sharon; Art in Idaho
Thank you, Johnson’s Great Society.
Broke the back of the Black Family and it crept out to everyone else.
Thank you, Sexual Revolution. Now every family has a slut in the closet.

Not only Lyndon Johnson's Great Society; but also Johnson&Johnson's birth control pills arrived on the scene concurrently. And our helpful Supreme Court decided that doctors should be able to distribute birth control to the unmarried, and also that unmarried people should not be denied housing or motel rooms, and that unmarried pregnant women should be able to keep their jobs in elementary schools, even if the father was a married man on the same faculty, and that a man who was not paying child support for his children by previous wives could not be denied another marriage license as a way for a community to try to stop welfare abuse.

I'd very much like to know what kind of lobbying the pharmaceutical birth control industry did in this era, but it's just as likely that the Court was simply drunk with power all by itself.

79 posted on 11/08/2010 1:00:00 PM PST by Albion Wilde (Government does nothing as economically as the private sector. - Ronald Reagan)
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To: roses of sharon

This is an easy one: Kid = welfare check. More kids = bigger welfare check. Plus assorted further “bennies.”


80 posted on 11/08/2010 1:32:11 PM PST by Moltke (panem et circenses)
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