PSA, Video
Parents and families are facing new challenges, but one thing hasn’t changed-- the importance of dads being involved in their children’s lives. The NRFC is proud to release a series of new PSAs that encourage fathers to show their “#Dadication” by making time for their kids, even when parenting isn’t easy.
This video titled, Howard, demonstrates the cultural and generational differences in expressing love.
Check out the other #Dadication” PSAs which, depict some of the many ways fathers can show up for their children even when…
Across the political spectrum, unwed fatherhood is denounced as one of the leading social problems of today. Doing the Best I Can is a strikingly rich, paradigm-shifting look at fatherhood among inner-city men often dismissed as “deadbeat dads.” Kathryn Edin and Timothy J. Nelson examine how couples in challenging straits come together and get pregnant so quickly—without planning. The authors chronicle the high hopes for forging lasting family bonds that pregnancy inspires, and pinpoint the fatal flaws that often lead to the relationship’s demise. They offer keen insight into a radical…
A father will always play a vital role in a child's growing years, especially sons. His absence or presence in the child's life will have a profound impact in the future. In Black Fathers Black Sons, author Ray Waters delves into the relationships of African-American men and reveals new insights that will fuel debate and debunk many myths. (Author abstract)
In this chapter, I argue that scholars, social service providers, policy makers, and others who critically engage the topic of African American fatherhood, must attend to two concepts that highlight under-treated dimensions of that role: vulnerability and safe space. Vulnerability, a product of anxiety, uncertainty, and unfamiliarity, is a condition affecting many socio-economically disadvantaged African American fathers. These men also function without access to safe space, or public and/or institutionalized space that would allow them the opportunity to better realize, express, and address…
This chapter reviews the literature on fathers and their unique influences on positive child development in minority children in the United States. It begins with an historical overview of the field of fatherhood research that has been conducted primarily with minority (African American and Latino) families in the United States. It then describes the central research questions framing studies on ethnic minority fathers and discusses issues related to measurement and methodology. The majority of the chapter reviews empirical findings on the ways that ethnic minority fathers are engaged with…
“Daddy, There’s a Noise Outside,” takes the complex issue of protesting and breaks the conversation down so that a 1st grader can understand. The story begins when two children are awakened by noises in the middle of the night coming from outside the window of their inner-city neighborhood. Both their Dad and Mom spend the next morning explaining to them what was taking place in their community. (Author abstract)
"The fathers may soar. And the children may know their names," Toni Morrison wrote. In Black Fathers, Kristin Clark Taylor takes this wisdom to heart. Focusing on the irreplaceable gifts fathers bring to their children's lives as well as on the untold joy that comes from fathering a child, she invites all black fathers -- those who soar, those who are only learning how to fly, and those whose wings have been temporarily clipped by circumstances or personal failure -- to celebrate themselves, heal the fissures that separate them from their children, and reclaim their place in the hearts and…
Writing a book on African American manhood is truly a work-in-process. No man, no matter how old, has all the answers to the question, "What does it mean to be a real Black man?" Like all matters of image and identity, this question can only be answered by being in a relationship with a community of friends. Without the bond of friendship and respect, the effort to answer the question is likely to be marked by a competition to present the most superior image. Butler has attempted to answer the question by pointing to the fact that African American manhood is not one image or idea. Black…
This book and the accompanying documentary illustrates, despite mounds of derogatory statistics regarding Black men in their role as fathers, there is a strong legacy of Black men (from slavery to the present) who were/are very proactive fathers.Filmmaker/author Dana Ross utilizes her own family history, research and interviews with hundreds of Black fathers, educators and historians such as Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu and Dr. Ira Berlin, to explore Black men in their roles as fathers from their time of enslavement to the present.In order to reconnect with this legacy, the author unmasks the many…
The Best Kept Secret studies the often-overlooked group of single, African American custodial fathers. While the media focuses on the increase of single mothers and the decline in marriage in the black community, Roberta Coles paints a nuanced picture of single black dads. Based on qualitative research, the author looks at the parenting experience of these fathers, who may have become single parents through nonmarital births, divorce, widowhood and adoption. The fathers, ranging in age from 20 to 76, discuss their motivations for taking custody of their children, what roles they enact as…
