Black Fathers and Mass Incarceration: The Financial Toll

Across the nation, men father children and become “Dad”, “Daddy”, “Pops” or some form of a more sentimental identity than father. Each one, a sacred term used by children, young and old, to express the highest degree of trust, security, and love exchanged between a father and his child. In most cultures, men are known to be the foundation of their home. Their designated order in many societies and in most religions is to be the provider, protector, and leader of their homes. However, many families go without having men who lead in the home due to incarceration or untimely loss. This is especially true when it comes to the Black community, as mass incarceration disproportionately affects people in the Black community.

Mass incarceration as a political and social conversation began in the 1970’s but really took hold of the nation with the presidency of Ronald Regan. Regan asserted that the nation should be “tough on crime” and also force fed the country the political and racially charged propaganda rooted in the “War on Drugs”, which heavily targeted the Black and Latino communities. Both prominent angles of rhetoric during his presidency caused the number of incarcerated persons to double to 627,000 within his two terms alone (Cullen, 2018). From that point in history into current time, incarceration rates of marginalized populations, especially Black men, continue to rise. The vast increase of Black men being jailed or imprisoned has taken a heavy toll on the Black community.