This chapter describes and refutes four prominent characterizations of low-income fathers as nonessential, deadbeat, perpetuators of their own childhood histories, and dissenters of marriage. Research findings are cited from interviews with 22 low-income fathers of preschoolers that found despite daily challenges, most low-income fathers were highly involved in the lives of their children. Numerous references.
Nearly half of children born to poor parents remained poor half their childhoods. Black children are especially disadvantaged: two-thirds of poor black newborns are persistently poor. Children who are poor early in life (age 0-2) are 30 percent less likely to complete high school than those first poor later in childhood, even after controlling for poverty duration and other factors. Reaching vulnerable children at birth is vital, as a childs early environment can affect brain development. This factsheet summarizes the report Child Poverty and Its Lasting Consequence". (Author abstract)