Father(less) figures
The path out of criminality and its consequences in black communities starts with healing their families.
Crime and public safety are universal concerns that transcend politics and race. But more specifically in the black community — in the United States and Minnesota — is the overwhelming burden of living with persistent criminality and victimization.
Data from American Experiment’s 2023 report, “Dispelling the Myth of Unwarranted Racial Disparities in Minnesota’s Criminal Justice System” shows the ratio of black to white criminal offenders for serious crimes is 10 to 1. Likewise, the ratio of black to white victimization of these same crimes is also 10 to 1.
Criminologists and other experts often use the phrase “root causes” to explain why these disproportions exist. High unemployment, low homeownership rates, poor generational wealth, lack of health care, and educational achievement are often cited as some of the “root causes” that lead to crime in the black community.
These issues are surface-level compared to one so significant that it should be considered the “father” of all root causes: the proliferation of unwed parents and fatherless families — or “fragmented” families — in the black community.
Discussing fragmented families and the connection to higher crime in the black community is often met with an uncomfortable silence, often followed by disdain and reluctance to acknowledge any connection. Unfortunately, this translates to very little proactive effort to improve the situation.
Unless we begin to have forthright discussions that bring about policy and cultural changes, the very communities most affected by fragmented families will continue to deteriorate and struggle disproportionately.
Conservatives care deeply about the well-being of our communities and don’t shrink in the face of uncomfortable or challenging discussions. We invite these discussions not to blame anyone but to solve problems for the betterment of society. In the spirit of the phrase made popular by Pres. John F. Kennedy, “A rising tide lifts all boats.”
Fragmented families and crime: What the data shows
“The Real Root Causes of Violent Crime: The Breakdown of Marriage, Family, and Community” was published by The Heritage Foundation in 1995 and not surprisingly, its conclusions are still relevant today. “The professional literature of criminology is surprisingly consistent on the real root causes of violent crime: the breakdown of the family and community stability. The sequence has its deepest roots in the absence of stable marriage.” The following examples illustrate this point.
In 2023, the Institute for Family Studies published an analysis in its report, “Stronger Families, Safer Streets” indicating “total crime rate in cities with high levels of single parenthood are 48% higher than those with low levels of single parenthood. When it comes to violent crime and homicide, cities with high levels of single parenthood have 118% higher rates of violence and 255% higher rates of homicide.” In contrast, “public safety is greater in communities where the two-parent family is the dominant norm.”
In his 2021 article, “Fatherless Homes May Be America’s No. 1 Problem,” Dr. Tom Snyder concludes, “A child raised without a father is five times more likely to commit crime and be poor, nine times more likely to drop out of school, and 20 times more likely to end up in jail or prison.”
The University of Chicago published a study entitled, “Unmarried Fertility, Crime, and Social Stigma” in 2010. It established that for every one percent increase in out-of-wedlock births, there is a corresponding five percent increase in future murder rates.
In its 1997 study “Single-Parent Families Cause Juvenile Crime,” the Department of Justice concludes “the most reliable indicator of violent crime in a community is the proportion of fatherless families.”
Sadly, while criminology literature has long warned of the profoundly negative societal consequences regarding the connection between fragmented families and crime, the prevalence of fragmented families has only increased across all races.
The percentage of births to unmarried mothers and the percentage of single-parent families both nationally and in Minnesota have increased.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage of all children born to unmarried mothers more than doubled between 1980 and 2020, and the percentage of all children living in single-parent households has nearly doubled since 1970. While Minnesota’s percentages remain below the current national average, those percentages represent significant increases and are far above the national averages from the 1970s and ’80s.
On a positive note, according to U.S. Census data, the percentage of Minnesota’s black single-parent families fell from 64 percent in 2012 to 47 percent in 2021. However, that percentage is still significantly above the Minnesota average (28 percent), and more than double the percentage of Minnesota’s white single-parent families (21 percent).
Even more striking is the metro area data available from the Minnesota Department of Health. It shows that between 2010-2014, the unmarried birth rate for black women was consistently above 85 percent, while the same time-period birth rate for unmarried white women was consistently in the low 20 percent range.
Such disproportions in family structure between black and white Minnesotans provide the basis for many of the struggles and disparities that exist in the black community — not the least of which is crime.
The negative impact on families and children raised without the guidance of a father in the home is well established. But why do children from fragmented families become criminal offenders at such disproportionate rates?
Children, especially young males, benefit from an engaged father who demonstrates compassion, impulse control, discipline, work ethic, and morals. Children need a father, and mothers need a partner to share the responsibilities of raising children.
Of course, this doesn’t mean a single parent can’t raise a successful child. In fact, some people overcome the challenges that arise out of being from a fragmented family and achieve more than they might otherwise have expected.
It’s also important to acknowledge that some intact relationships might be so toxic or abusive that children would be better off in a single-parent household situation.
But while examples of outlier situations exist, children and society clearly benefit from intact families.
The impact of fragmented families in Minnesota’s black community
The devastating connection between fragmented families and crime is most striking in the black community, and the data is clear. While significant disproportions exist between black and white intact families, there are correspondingly significant disproportions in criminal offending, whereby black Minnesotans commit crime at rates that are grossly disproportionate to their percentage of the general population.
In the American Experiment report, “Dispelling the Myth of Racial Disparities in Minnesota’s Criminal Justice System,” data shows black Minnesotans commit crime, especially violent crime likely to result in incarceration, at grossly disproportionate rates compared to white Minnesotans.
In 2021, black adult Minnesotans represented just seven percent of the state population but represented 35 percent of all serious offenders. These proportions become more pronounced with the seriousness of offenses. For example, black Minnesotans were 16 times more likely than white Minnesotans to be an assault offender, 50 times more likely to be a murder offender, and an astounding 107 times more likely to be a robbery offender.
When a disproportion of such magnitude exists, it’s important to have serious discussions about what is creating it if we ever hope to see improvements.
However, while the connection between the percentage of broken black families and the level of black criminal offending is solid and persuasive, many concede those necessary and tough discussions are not occurring within the black community.
“Courage is contagious”
Kendall Qualls, founder and president of TakeCharge, has identified fatherless families as the number one problem facing the black community. Qualls was raised by a single mother in Harlem and has faced criticism for speaking out about the epidemic of fatherlessness and being unafraid to confront organizations that claim to be helping people of color: “There has not been one national initiative to restore the two-parent black family by the NAACP, national church organizations, or political organizations,” Qualls says.
He is confident that boldly addressing the issue is not only the right thing to do but also the most important thing to do if the black community is to rebound.
Qualls often says, “Courage is contagious,” and is making it his mission to change the trajectory of black families in Minnesota and nationwide. Showing courage in the face of criticism will inspire other black Minnesotans to speak out about the problem of fragmented families and reconstitute a culture that values strong families, faith, hard work, and honor — all values that were once championed by the black community.
Finding the courage to speak about the destructive and debilitating nature of fatherless and unmarried families in the black community is extremely important. Doing so could bring positive change for generations of black Minnesotans. Remaining timid and quiet will only subject the black community to untold more years of dysfunction and dependency. Qualls gives an eloquent diagnosis:
The number one problem facing the black community is the deterioration of intact families and the 80-90 percent fatherless homes in black communities. This 50-year transformation came about because of government dependency policies that cultivated the destruction of two-parent families that were abundant prior to 1970. The issue of over-policing and removing men from the community is a myth at best and an outright lie at worst. The fatherless home problem is so severe that it is the root problem plaguing the black community with symptoms such as low graduation rates, high crime, financial disparities, health disparities and high unemployment. It is not, as so many try to suggest, the result of systemic racism or whiteness.
Many leaders in the black community agree with Qualls’ assessment but remain hesitant to speak publicly about it. Out of nine black leaders contacted for their perspective on the issue of fragmented families in the black community, four responded — and should be lauded for their courage and willingness to share their thoughts.
In addition to Qualls, Peter Bell, Bishop Harding Smith, and Laverne Turner generously contributed their insights.
Bell, one of the founders of Center of the American Experiment, currently serves on the Board of Directors of several civic organizations including the American Action Forum and the Greater Twin Cities United Way, and formerly served as a University of Minnesota regent and as the chair of the Metropolitan Council. Bell shared:
I think that out-of-wedlock births are the most important issue that we have complete control of in our communities and families. The data is very clear that communities and cultures that have lower out-of-wedlock births have less crime, higher graduation rates, and higher incomes. Nothing could improve the quality of life in black America faster than for the black community to own and address this painful but critical issue in our community.
Bishop Smith is the current Bishop of Twin Cities’ The Spiritual Church of God and is the founder of Minnesota Acts Now, a non-profit organization that is focused on eradicating gun violence and homelessness. Bishop Smith shared:
I can’t stress enough the importance of a father in a home for a young child. The father is the disciplinarian, protector, provider, and the one that sets the tune of daily life in a home. He’s also the foundation in the development of a child. We see today that a lot of our kids that are in homes without a dad seem to struggle with direction and are mostly suspended from schools or drop out because the dad is not around to encourage and lay down the law. Children need their dad.
Turner is a lifelong resident of Minneapolis and is currently running for mayor on a platform focused on public safety, economic revitalization, and restoring city pride. Turner shared:
The fatherless issue in the black community is a huge problem, and the correlation of fatherlessness and crime are irrefutable. The main contribution to the fatherless problem in the black community, and actually for mainstream society as well, stem from ideologies on the left: Ultra/Extreme feminism and the “I don’t a need a man” era, along with government policies that erase a father’s importance to the basic foundation of the family unit.
Another leader who wanted to remain anonymous emphasized that black pastors and the black church have run from the issue of fragmented families because they don’t want to risk losing followers.
He described these black pastors as conducting “prosperity preaching” rather than preaching about sin and morality.
He is pessimistic that the nuclear family can be restored in the black community, but he agreed it’s an issue that must be addressed from within the community itself if restoration is to occur.
Sadly, it’s not only black churches that have ignored the issue, but also institutions like the Twin Cities Urban League, whose mission purports to be empowering and improving the lives of black Minnesotans.
In 2021, the organization published its 71-page report, “State of Black Minnesota.” It identified several areas of concern, such as health and wellness, criminal justice disparities, educational disparities, and the lack of generational wealth. In each section, the report listed policy considerations that could help improve the outcomes in each area. Addressing the issue of fragmented families in the black community was notably absent from every policy consideration section and was completely ignored throughout the report — another example of the lack of courage Qualls has referred to.
Conclusion
Fragmented families are a significant problem in the black community — a sort of taproot that amplifies all other root causes. But as Bell noted, the black community has “full control” over the problem and can choose to address it or continue to ignore it. Those of us in the community at large must lend our efforts to support those who are willing and actively working to confront the problem. And this issue doesn’t exist in isolation.
Data shows fragmented families are a growing problem across all demographics. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us all to “be the example” and courageously reject the transformation of cultural norms that devalue the nuclear family and the importance of present and responsible fathers. Continuing to wish away or ignore fragmented families and the consequential harm they inflict in our communities harms our collective futures.
Now is the time to prove that courage is, in fact, courageous.