Study: 60 Percent of Richmond Families Are Single Parent

As Father’s Day approaches, children are reminded to appreciate their dads and the impact on their lives.

Today dads around the city were honored a week in advance of Father’s Day. Celebrate Fatherhood 2013 was held this afternoon at the Collegiate School Aquatics Center. {snip}

First Things First, an organization dedicated to keeping dads involved in kids’ lives, reports that 60 percent of all families in the city of Richmond are single-parent households. Within the African-American demographic, that number spikes up to 86 percent, a number that surpasses the national average.

“It’s not just Richmond and it’s not always just African-Americans,” Sean Powell, who helps run father boot camps in the community, said. “Whether they leave the house or not, it’s always important for them [fathers] to be there for that child.

“That’s basically what’s in our culture right now. You’re having baby mamas or baby daddies. So even if it is a baby mother or baby father, you treat them with respect as she is the mother of your child. And it’s the same, visa-versa, for the mother treating the father that way,” Powell said.

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