We were in Wal-Mart the other day and I thought an individual was getting confrontational with my 16-year-old and it put me on edge real quick, only to find out it wasn’t what I thought it was, but that’s just me being on edge because of what happened to Trayvon. You’re going to react faster than you normally would. It kind of makes me edgy with my other kids, especially after everything that’s gone on since Trayvon.
We as men, we as fathers, we need to educate men on being responsible fathers. You look at 60% of marriages in the African-American community are over in the first 3 years. We put ourselves in the situation where our kids are coming from broken homes. And the kids feel like our fathers are deserting us.
I think we as Black fathers have to be role models to our own kids. My daughter is at the age where she’s about to start dating. She said she wanted her choice to have some of the attributes I have. [She told me] You work hard, you cherish the family, you love God, and you love pleasing people. And that’s the kind of person I want to be with. And that made me feel good.
We raise our kids from kindergarten to 12th grade and then let them go after that. Let’s start thinking about higher education because education is the key at the end of the day. We can’t be content with just a child graduating from high school.
Tracy Martin is the proud father of five children, including Trayvon Martin. He and Trayvon’s mother Sybrina founded the Trayvon Martin Foundation. For more information on the foundation and the Circle Of Fathers, click HERE.
(Photos courtesy of Tracy Martin/Tracy Martin Twitter)
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Tracy Martin’s Message To Black Fathers was originally published on blackamericaweb.com
