No moment in a man’s life compares to the moment when he becomes a father. Holding his child, God’s own creation, imparts a sense of wonder. But it also offers a challenge: A father has to be a protector, provider, mentor, leader, and so much more in the child’s life.
As fathers who have experienced this very moment, we understand the need for engaged men in the home. We’ve read a mountain of studies on what happens to families without a strong father figure: Children are less likely to finish school and be healthy and are more likely to later go to prison (especially boys); girls are more likely to become pregnant as teenagers.
Unfortunately, this is the reality facing too many children in America today. Right now, America leads the world in the number of fatherless children — by a lot. Currently, there are about 18.4 million children without fathers across our nation, or 23% of all American children, which is more than three times the world average.
Fatherlessness has a social, moral, and spiritual cost. They provide discipline and stability in the home. Our prisons are full of young men who need a father in their lives. In Mississippi, for instance, we estimate that more than half the prison population is made up of men who came from fatherless homes.
There’s a monetary cost to this national crisis, too. The state of Mississippi spends about $180 million per year to house fatherless inmates. In fact, a recent report from Mississippi proves the fatherless children in Mississippi today will cost taxpayers about $700 million in current and future spending.
But strong families aren’t just important for the taxpayer. They’re important for the future of our nation, too. In total, about 70% of high school dropouts are from homes without fathers. Once they’re no longer in school, studies show that those same children are much more likely to find themselves in poverty and living off government programs. In Mississippi, taxpayers will lose $560 million in possible economic production because of the fatherless children who dropped out in the 2021-22 school year.
Interrupting the cycle of fatherlessness is also important for the health of our daughters. A young girl who grows up without an engaged father is eight times more likely to become pregnant as a teenager. After that, the vicious cycle often repeats itself.
The point here is that everyone — young and old, married and single — should care about good fathers in every home. We need pastors, elected officials, coaches, teachers, and community leaders all singing from the same hymnal on the importance of fatherhood. We need to tell young men that if they are man enough to choose to father a child, they need to be man enough to help raise that child.
No matter the problem — violent crime, rampant poverty, poor health outcomes, failing schools — we know that simply adding a father into the life of his child can make a difference for the child, father, and society.
But too often, today’s society looks for “Band-Aid” solutions, quick fixes, and cheap political talking points. In the state of Mississippi and across our country, we want to try out a new approach. Let’s touch the lives of young people before they turn to crime. Let’s focus our attention on struggling students before they drop out of school. Let’s teach children the value of hard work and integrity. And let’s be there as protectors of young women before they become pregnant out of wedlock and continue the cycle all over again.
In many ways, the solution to so many of our national problems is disarmingly simple: America needs great fathers in every household, and our communities need to step up and provide support for these involved fathers. Together, by naming the problem and fighting to solve it, we can reinvigorate the American family and, in so doing, restore our nation.
Jack Brewer is a federal commissioner with the U.S. Commission for the Social Status of Black Men and Boys. He also serves as chairman of the Center for Opportunity Now at the America First Policy Institute and is a proud father. Shad White serves as the 42nd state auditor of Mississippi and is a proud father.
