Single dad households are on the rise! You are not alone! The ‘norm’ of the women taking care of the children while the father abandons the family is no longer the truth. As divorce rates continue to rise, single parent households are also rising, however, the men are stepping up to the plate.
According to the 2000 census, there are now 2.2 million single father households, that is 1 in 45 households. This is drastically higher than it was 20 years ago. Because of this fact, it is slowly but surely becoming more socially acceptable to be a single father.
However, it is a serious fact that single dads need help just like single mothers. Dads have previously been reluctant in asking for child support from the mother in fear that the court would give the mother could gain custody of the children again due to social standards of children being happier with the mother generally.
However, courts and judges are adjusting to the current times and are aware of the new living situations. They are being more compliant with single fathers and understand that not all men want to abandon their children. In all actuality, many fathers want to be a part of the children’s lives, but sometimes the mothers and the court systems prevent this from even being a possibility. This new family structure and hierarchy is just another example of the changing times of modernity and our needs to constantly adapt to our surroundings at all costs, or else suffer irreparable consequences.
Sources
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=93279&page=1#.UJhHdoafWt8