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Thursday 1 December 2011
What's the Problem with Black Fathers?

Given the difficulties of being an unmarried parent, why then don’t more black men, if they care about their children, marry their child’s mother? Poor black couples don’t wed for the same reason that disadvantaged couples of all races have become less inclined to do so. Marriage may be a matter of love and devotion, but it is also an exchange. A big part of what the man offers is his ability to help support the family. The better his economic prospects, the more appealing a husband he will seem to many women. If they are to be husbands, men need to be able to be providers.

Unfortunately, all too many of the men in cities like Philadelphia have little hope of being able to support a family. The shifting labor market has eliminated the sort of well-paying blue-collar jobs on which earlier generations of men relied. And in urban areas, men are disproportionately likely to lack to the college education that well-paying jobs typically require.

If only the waning of marriage among African Americans could be remedied by urging men to “take responsibility.” Such moral injunctions may make good theater, but they are no substitute for effective public policy. Politicians would do better to improve the school system, so that students are equipped with the skills necessary to become valuable employees and contributing members of society. If young men had jobs, they’d be more attractive partners for the women who have their children.

Those marauding bands of teenagers in Philadelphia have been failed by their parents. But their parents also have been failed by a government that has not provided an education for a changing economic landscape. That’s a problem for which we all bear responsibility.

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