The following article “Why Men Are In Trouble” motivated me to write this blog:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/04/opinion/bennett-men-in-trouble/index.html

It was a very disturbing article for many reasons.  Men don’t spend time with their families and children, they don’t go to church and they play a lot of video games.  Women are graduating at three times the rate of men, climbing the corporate ladder faster, and continue to be faithful to church attendance and raising their children as single-parents.

Honestly, I do not see much to celebrate.  I do not want to take away from the accomplishments of women and all that we have accomplished, but it does not feel like a victory when our fathers, uncles, brothers, babies’ fathers, and male cousins seem to be doing so poorly.  Does male’s success indirectly mean female’s failure and does female’s success indirectly mean male’s failure?  Is it possible for both groups to succeed simultaneously?

In the black community the emphasis has been on saving the black male.  We need men in the church.  We need men in the homes.  We need men in the schools.  We need better fathers.  We need male mentors.  Yet, this article is not racially specific which leads me to think that the problem that we see in the black community is just a microcosm of a much larger problem in America.

And the problem in America that we are seeing with male involvement in the family, education, and the job sector has nothing to do with the fact that women are getting more degrees.  It has everything to do with the breakdown of the American family.

Just turn your television on and check out the family shows.  That’s right. They are all on “Nick At Night”.  The 8:00 p.m. hour is no longer centered around The Cosby Show, Family Matters, Family Ties, Full House, The Wonder Years, Married with Children, Growing Pains, or Roseanne.  The 8:00 p.m. hour on television today is all about reality shows, winning a million dollars, knocking yourself out on an obstacle course, and eliminating the next bachelor or bachelorette.

I am not suggesting that all of the family shows of the past were perfect, but there were some common denominators.  These shows had a strong male father character, a strong female mother character, and the children for the most part showed honor and respect to their parents.  In other words we had some type of image of what it meant to be a father, mother, provider, and nurturer.

What kind of images does television portray today?  The number one show  for the past couple of years was Two And a Half Men?  Really? Two men who cannot keep steady relationships, and a young boy who will learn from these two men who never seem to go to work, have meaningless sex, and live off their rich mother.  Thank you sitcom networks.  This is exactly what we need to save our males…