Black Fathers

An Invisible Presence in America, Second Edition

Michael E. Connor, Joseph White, Michael E. Connor, Joseph White

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2011
• Print ISBN: 9780415883665
• eBook ISBN: 9781136735356
• Topic: Psychologie
• Subtopic: Entwicklungspsychologie

This book offers a broader, more positive picture of African American fathers. Featuring case studies of African-descended fathers, this edited volume brings to life the achievements and challenges of being a black father in America. Leading scholars and practitioners provide unique insight into this understudied population. Short-sighted social policies which do not encourage father involvement are critically examined and the value of father engagement is promoted. The problems associated with the absence of a father are also explored.

The second edition features an increased emphasis on:

• the historical issues confronting African descended fathers
• the impact of health issues on Black fathers and their children
• the need for therapeutic interventions to aid in the healing of fathers and their children
• the impact of an Afrikan-centered fathering approach and the need for research which considers systemic problems confronting African American fathers
• community focused models that provide new ideas for (re)connecting absent fathers
• learning tools including reflective questions and a conclusion in each chapter and more theory and research throughout the book.

Part I provides a historical overview of African descended fathers including their strengths and shortcomings over the years. Next, contributors share their personal stories including one from a communal father working with underserved youth and two others that highlight the impact of absent fathers. Then, the research on father-daughter relationships is examined including the impact of father absence on daughters and on gender identity. This section concludes with a discussion of serving adolescents in the foster care system. Part II focuses on the importance of a two-parent home, communal fathering, and equalitarian households. Cultural implications and barriers to relationships are also explored. This section concludes with a discussion of the struggles Black men face with role definitions. The book concludes with a discussion of the impact of adoption and health issues on Black fathers and their children, and the need for more effective therapeutic interventions that include a perspective centered in the traditions and cultures of Afrika in learning to become a father. The final chapter offers an intervention model to aid in fatherhood.

An ideal supplementary text for courses on fathers and fathering, introduction to the family, parenting, African American families/men, men and masculinity, Black studies, race and ethnic relations, and family issues taught in a variety of departments, the book also appeals to social service providers, policy makers, and clergy who work with community institutions.

section one

Impact of father engagement

chapter one

African Descended Fathers

Historical Considerations

Michael E. Connor

Alliant International University San Francisco, California

As noted in the first edition of this book, too often both the professional and commercial literature presents African descended fathers as deadbeat, deficient, lacking, uninvolved, uncaring, and absent (Connor & White, 2006). Certainly, these notions are accurate and appropriate for some African American fathers, but they do not tell a complete or accurate story in that African American fathers who are and have been involved/engaged with their children and families (and perhaps other children in their communities) are completely ignored. Additionally, these stereotypes minimize or ignore the circumstances and contexts in which African American fathers make their decisions. Thus, we offered numerous opportunities in which present and engaged fathers shared their stories. These men had a history of being present, involved, engaged, and important in the lives of their sons and daughters, stepchildren, and extended family members, or they shared information regarding their own involved fathers.

This chapter discusses the impact of some of the historical circumstances in which Black fathers made parenting decisions (or, in some cases, had the decision made for them). The actions, conditions, responses, decisions, and behaviors of Black fathers all take place in a social, historical, political, and environmental context. And, as noted above, this context is seldom discussed, provided, or considered when researching, studying, teaching, or developing social policy designed to impact the Black community. As in the African tradition, to understand where one is going, it is important to understand where one has been; that is, it is important to frame one’s presence in relationship to one’s past.

As pertains to effective fathers/fathering, the norms used to determine successful fathering tend to reflect a Eurocentric, middle-class bias emphasizing income and financial provision. By this definition, more privileged men (having benefited from higher education and solid employment opportunities) are perceived to be “good” fathers (whether or not they spend much time with their children), whereas those with minimal education, skills, and income are perceived as deficient (even if they spend significant time with their children).^* Societal factors that mitigate against receiving a quality education and thus a solid vocational background are ignored (as are the advantages and privileges afforded some in obtaining a quality education), and the amount of time spent with children seems not to be an important variable. In this chapter a brief overview of the history of African descended men as fathers in the United States is offered. Fathering constraints during the periods of Maafa (the Holocaust of Enslavement),^† Reconstruction/the Jim Crow era, civil rights– desegregation, the decay of urban communities, and the resultant gang activity and War on Drugs are considered. In this manner, it is hoped to provide a context pertaining to the plight, situation, options, and positions of Black men over the years. Any serious discussion pertaining to meaningful resolution must be in the context of these problems.

Maafa/Enslavement

The first Africans arrived on the shores of South Carolina in 1526 in Spanish slave ships (Rasbury, 2010). They soon revolted and fled, seeking refuge with Native Americans. Shortly thereafter this early Spanish colony dispersed. Blacks arrived in English America in August 1619, and the first Black child was born in the Virginia colony in 1624.

Some years later, in 1641, slavery was introduced in the Massachusetts colony. The Christian men and women who captured Africans, transported them to America, and developed, enforced, and profited from enslavement were motivated by money, position, power, privilege, and racism. But all was not smooth. The first legal protest against slavery took place in 1644 and the first serious slave conspiracy in 1663. Slave revolts date back to 1708, and they took place routinely across the colonies (Bennett, 1984). Thus, although African men arrived in the New World prior to the onset of the peculiar institution, it was the onset and promulgation of enslavement that shapes and contributes to the position and status of Black men, women, and families today (as well as the status and position of White America).

It is under the watch of these Christian folks that the original absentee/ deadbeat fathers came to have a devastating impact on African descended fathers and their families. Although laws and statutes regarding paternal responsibilities were in place during these colonial times, they did not extend to White men who fathered Black babies. For example, two of the fundamental attributes of “good” dads were that they acknowledged paternity and that they supported the children they fathered (Dayton, 1991). White men who failed to assume the responsibilities of paternity were only considered sinners and criminals if their natal partners were White. These women could subsequently name them as the father of their child(ren), obtain a warrant, and force them into court to be held accountable. Although White fathers were legally responsible for the debts of their children (Pleck, 2004), this responsibility did not extend to their children with non-White mothers: Enslaved Africans had no rights beyond what their masters deemed reasonable. Thus, the original deadbeat dads (i.e., slave masters) have yet to pay their due.

Additionally, profit-motivated slave owners mated and bred African men and women in an attempt to develop stronger, more durable “stock” that could perform more work (much as farmers have done with farm animals for generations). To justify these inhumane actions, Africans were designated as less than human. Other than preparing them to work, there was little expectation that they desired, or were capable of, taking care of their offspring.

As part of the dehumanization of the enslaved Africans, slave owners advanced several myths, including the seemingly irrational notion that African slaves were well taken care of, that they did not mind their position, and that they were “happy-go-lucky,” as evidenced by their singing in the fields while working hard all day. The harsh reality is that being treated as property and being frequently separated from their family and tribesmen caused serious trauma to African men, women, and children. These traumatic experiences were a major cause of sporadic slave revolts. Because of the constant threat of severe punishment and death, African fathers often had little control over themselves, much less their partners or children.

In spite of these harsh conditions, there is good evidence to suggest that many African descended men in the 17th century were actively and directly involved in family life. Genovese (1978), for example, notes that enslaved men were willing to risk punishment in order to keep families together. He indicates that some slave owners were cognizant of this and often argued against separation of Black families because slaves worked better when kept together. He also indicates in studying runaway slaves that the importance of family life was second only to the resentment of punishment as reasons for running away. Gutman (1976) writes that large numbers of slave couples lived in long marriages, and most lived in double-headed households. Thus, whereas the owners may not have recognized marriages, enslaved people did.

It is impossible to know how many African children were born as a result of (forced) breeding programs and/or by the impregnation (interracial rape) by slave owners at the time of the Emancipation. It is also difficult to determine the impact on the psyche of the Black men and Black fathers to have been so emasculated. But, in the more than 220 years of enslavement (10 to 11 generations), certainly there were major, long-term impacts on African family life. These may have included procreation in the absence of parental bonds or sufficient plans for childrearing, having to care for and raise the children of others (i.e., slave owners) over one’s own children, reenactment of public beatings and humiliations within one’s own family, and in general, becoming dependent on White oppressors for one’s survival.

Reconstruction–Jim Crow Era

The period following the “end of slavery” (1863–1877) reflected an attempt to rebuild the social and economic institutions of the South in a manner that, to an extent, included newly “freed” Africans. The efforts were met with resistance and violent opposition toward the newly freed men by the Ku Klux Klan and other White supremacist organizations. With the Compromise of 1877, the U.S. military was withdrawn from the South and gains previously made quickly dissipated. Interestingly, Harris (1976) found that during the years following the Civil War, two-parent households were dominant in the African American community, in spite of the mounting intolerance and hostilities. Black fathers and mothers were attempting to hold their families together under extreme adversarial conditions.

This period predates the major migration of African descended people from the Deep South to what would become the industrialized North. The migration that occurred was primarily from the “border states” to the Northeast and New England states, and cities like Boston and New York. After a few years primarily employed in domestic work such as cooks, maids, and servants, many African Americans returned to the South. Much of this was the result of unanticipated problems they faced as supposedly “freed” people. These included the difficulty men encountered finding work and considerable hostilities from recent immigrants arriving from Europe, who were often competing for the same jobs and limited housing (Johnson & Campbell, 1981).

The conquered South was resentful, and with the removal of military support under the Johnson presidency, Blacks were quickly returned to a form of enslavement with Jim Crow laws and practices in place. As relates to Black fathers, the inability to obtain an education, the lack of work, the social controls, and the related ongoing White hostilities continued to take a major toll. Racism was expressed harshly, directly, and with little fear of punishment. Some 5,000 African American citizens (primarily males) were lynched between 1860 and 1890 (they were first castrated, then shot or burned, and then hanged, often in a festive, picnic-style atmosphere). There is no evidence that a single White or group of Whites was ever charged or prosecuted for these horrific crimes. Yet, in this way the societal imperative to control, oppress, and, if necessary, emasculate African males continued.

The “Kansas Exodus” of 1879 was a planned and organized migration of freed people to the Kansas Territory to seek a better way of life. Blacks migrated in large numbers for social, political, and economic gains. Some traveled with their families, others by themselves. But the areas they left and the places they arrived had an uneven ratio of men to women. Some of the Black settlers bought farms or successfully homesteaded, but most were ill-prepared for the harsh Kansas winters. They were also unprepared for the hostilities of Whites, who passed laws that made it difficult for Blacks to own land, or to remain in certain communities after dark (so-called sundowner laws), and that generally limited the political powers of Blacks to govern themselves.

During the early 1900s, African American men, women, and children came north in large numbers seeking a better way of life. This was the Great Migration, which led to the urbanization and industrialization of masses of Blacks. Data suggest that single men, women, families, and married men without their families participated in the movement. Some families were forever torn apart as a result of this movement. Promises and dreams of an independent life off the farm and in the city were enticing. Unfortunately, the dreams became nightmares as only Black women were permitted (domestic) work, while there was nothing for the masses of Black men (Genovese, 1978). Housing and education continued to be problems, and Blacks were (re)settled in large numbers in racially segregated parts of the cities.

The years following World War I were harsh ones for African Americans. Systematic exclusion from all facets of life was pervasive. “Jim Crow” was alive, well, and thriving. Political, economic, educational, and social advances were slow in coming and painfully gained, and African Americans continued to be subject to mob violence: Between 1880 and 1951, 3,437 African Americans were lynched in America, south and north. The country that fought a great war to “make the world safe for democracy” made few and feeble attempts to include African Americans or other people of color in any democratic processes.

By the 1930s, the country was in the midst of a Great Depression. Unemployment of White Americans was at an all-time high (24.9%), and examples abound regarding the devastating impact of this unemployment on White families. Many families broke up as men became despondent and left their families, and newspapers reported rampant homelessness, hunger, and a general lack of hope that led the most desperate to suicide or suicidal attempts. Although American society came to understand the potentially catastrophic impact of widespread poverty on White families, there was little appreciation of how these forces were affecting Black families at the same time. For example, during the 1930s the unemployment rate for Black males in the North was 38.9% and 23.2% for Black females (McMahon, 2009). White America evidenced little understanding, tolerance, compassion, or concern of this on Black fathers’ ability to provide for their families.^*

By the early 1940s, the country was moving toward a second great war to make the world “safe for democracy.” During the early years of the war, there was less north-to-south migration of Blacks because of the lack of employment possibilities in northern cities and the hostilities encountered. As World War II intensified and White males were increasingly leaving jobs to fight overseas, the demand for Black laborers increased. By 1944, increased hiring triggered historic migrations of Blacks from the mostly rural South to the more industrialized Northeast, Midwest, and Northwest in search of employment opportunities. Black males were usually primary players in these migrations, and this sometimes created uneven sex ratios either in the communities from which they came or those into which they moved. Such displacements not only affected whole communities but often had disruptive effects on individual families and family members within them.

Additionally, when family units migrated, an entirely new set of social problems evolved. In a racially segregated America, there was a shortage of housing (single-family homes) for these newly arriving families. To “solve” the problem, existing single-family houses were converted to tenements, resulting in exorbitant housing costs (and high profits for the absentee owners), overcrowding, and public health problems. (Housing projects were designed and developed to solve these problems!) Prostitution, homicide, drug addiction, juvenile delinquency, and violence ensued (Johnson & Campbell, 1981).

Civil Rights–Desegregation

The 1950s were a time of heightened tension between the races. As Whites were afforded aid and opportunity in a growing, thriving postwar America, the lack of jobs, poor housing, inadequate educational opportunities, and the lack of political strength continued to frustrate the masses of Blacks. Inferior segregated schools, housing covenants resulting in “de facto” segregation, continued enforcement of Jim Crow laws/ practices, and the lack of employment opportunities continued to take a toll on Black America. However, Black family life and family support were initially solid in Black communities throughout the United States. In 1950, 91% of African American homes were dual-headed, and though that percentage had decreased to 67.7% by 1970, 54.2% were still headed by two parents as late as 1980 (Glick, 1997). However, the cumulative effects of poverty, racism, White privilege, and the resultant segregation had exacted an enormous toll.

Clearly, the historical attempts to disrupt Black families and communities have had devastating psychological, sociocultur...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Preface
• Section I: Impact of father engagement
• Section II: Father stories
• Section III: Thoughts and reflections
• Author Index
• Subject Index