The primary problem

Wish I'd said that!

[Reprinted from Issues & Views October 21, 2002]

In a recent column, Larry Elder scoffs at the ongoing demands from black leaders for black reparations--as if more bundles of money will put an end to chronic pathology. After citing the opportunities now enjoyed by this country's blacks, he asks,

Will the "black leadership" stand up and recognize the primary problem facing America, in general--black America, in particular--the absence of involved, responsible fathers?

Rapper LL Cool J recently walked off the stage at a concert in Irvine, Calif., when rival gang members began fighting in the audience. Later, the rapper bluntly said, "It's just appalling. I think that it's just a prime example of how much we, as black men, really need fathers, and how our community is really suffering in terms of role models, and having someone around us who can guide us in the right direction, and how we are so in desperate need of attention that we will ruin an event just to get . . . just to feel important."

NBA star-turned-basketball-analyst Marques Johnson once analyzed the behavior of talented but surly black Portland Trail Blazers basketball player Rasheed Wallace. "Some of these . . . African-American players today come from single-parent homes," said Johnson, "where there's no strong father figure in the home . . . "

Will reparations magically reduce the percentage of black children born to unwed mothers? Will the money reduce the nearly 1,250 mostly minority gangs in L.A., comprising some 150,000 mostly young people? And perhaps, more importantly, will reparations improve the often self-defeating attitude of so many blacks?

-- Larry Elder, excerpted from his syndicated column, "The Reparation Desperation;" daily talk show host on KABC-AM radio in Los Angeles. Purchase his book, The Ten Things You Can't Say In America, by clicking here. (Creators Syndicate)

Visit the Larry Elder website.

The Civilizing Power of Marriage and Family

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