For much of the U.S. population, absentee fathers is the most significant family or social problem facing America. There is a trend sweeping the nation. No, it’s not a fashion trend, but it seems to be a growing trend in the United States. Absent parents, but more specifically, absent fathers. Many teens in the U.S. have been victimized by this trend. Unlike other trends, this one shows no signs of going out of style. At such a fragile age, children and teens are being deprived of vital bonding with their father. Many men have many excuses for abandoning their children. Many argue that they are not fit to be a parent, and they don’t want to ruin the life of their child. If they only knew how their absence would affect their child and his/her growth, maybe they would stay. Many children with absent fathers look to fill that void in all the wrong places, and with all the wrong things. An estimated 24.7 million children (36.3%) live absent from their biological father. Children with absent fathers, on average, are more likely to be poor, experience educational, health, emotional, and psychological problems, be victims of child abuse, and engage in criminal behavior than those children with both a mother and a father in the household. This trend needs to go out of style soon, before it becomes an epidemic.
–Elijah X
