When Mama Is Daddy: The Male Crisis and Challenge of Ending Father Absence has become a bestseller on Amazon. The book has started off so well and I look forward in the days ahead to sharing it with more readers.
Father absence is a factor in nearly everything we do in this country.
That might sound like I’m overstating the problem, but I’m not. Father absence — the state of being where the father is not in the home or emotionally available — affects how our taxes are spent, how our churches serve, how our schools teach.
Research says we spend $100 billion a year in tax dollars on father absence and its impact.
This is just a conservative estimate. It factors in certain government programs that serve the needs of single-parent homes and their children, but it doesn’t factor in lost income potential due to father absence and other effects.
Churches have ministries that serve the poor or those in single-parent homes. These ministries help make sure children get shoes and mothers have food. These ministries include food pantries, clothing drives, etc.
Our educational system has after-school programs aimed at serving the needs of at-risk children — most likely from fatherless homes. They try to offer programs and projects to keep the children out of trouble.
I’m not overstating the problem.
In fact, I see father absence as such a big problem that I’ve dedicated my life’s work to raising awareness about it.
My new book When Mama is Daddy takes a hard look at father absence, the reasons for it, and offers solutions to men and women for ways to address it.
In the book, I challenge men to become accountable and responsible in their children’s lives, and I also share some insights with single moms and women on raising their sons and the drawbacks of trying to do it all alone.
Men leave their families for many reasons.
Among those reasons are:
The parental bond isn’t strong enough
Unresolved conflict with the mother
Family court helps push the father away
Intergenerational father absence
The expectation and control issues of the Mother
Illicit drug involvement and incarceration
Loss of income
Demanding work schedule or relocation issues
New relationship conflict
We are also living in such a time where many would have us believe that men are vanishing or are completely unnecessary
This is a dangerous and half-baked idea.
It is dangerous because of the imminent diminished quality of life for everyone on the planet without men. While the curtailment of male entitlements and the expansion of women’s employment opportunities, and educational, legal, and economic attainments have transformed American life, this hardly signals that men are unnecessary.
The presence — or absence — of a father can determine how his children will view life, love, family, and relationships for the rest of their lives.
While single mothers can and have been raising their children alone for quite some time now, I believe it is time for men to rise up and be present with their children physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, and spiritually.
In the weeks ahead I plan to share with you some thoughts on what men can do to help end father absence.
If you’ve not had a chance to download your copy of:
When Mama is Daddy: The Male Crisis and Challenge of Ending Father Absence, by Kenneth Osborne, PhD
If you would prefer an autographed copy of the print book, please drop me a request at:
Therapeutic Justice Institute
21037 Coventry Circle
Shorewood, Il 60404
You can also use your Visa, MasterCard, or American Express by dialing
708-527-4282
If you would like to invite me to speak about the topic of this book — father absence and its impact — at your conference, convention, retreat, or other events, please BOOK an introductory call or email me at authorkennethlosborne@gmail.com