The Root of the problem in Baton Rouge & Elsewhere in America-Where are the Fathers?

If we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that too many fathers are missing from too many lives and too many homes. They have abandoned their responsibilities, acting like boys instead of men.

Of all the rocks upon which we build our lives, family is the most important. We recognize and honor how critical every father is to that foundation. They are teachers and coaches. They are mentors and role models. They are examples of success and the men who constantly push us toward it.

You and I know how true this is in the African-American community. We know that way, way more than half of all black children live in single-parent households, a number that has doubled – doubled – since we were children. We know the statistics – that children who grow up without a father are five times more likely to live in poverty and commit crime; nine times more likely to drop out of schools and twenty times more likely to end up in prison. They are more likely to have behavioral problems, or run away from home, or become teenage parents themselves. And the foundations of our community are weaker because of it.

We need fathers to realize that responsibility does not end at conception. We need them to realize that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child – it’s the courage to raise one.

I'm glad we all agree with these brilliant words.