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Stereotypes Of Single Mothers

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In the past, single motherhood was mainly restricted to poverty-stricken women and minorities such as Hispanics, Asian Americans, and American Indians. Today, single motherhood is now becoming the new “norm” with the number of children born outside marriage increasing intensely over the decades. Presently, there are around 17.5 million children under 18 being fostered without a father and nearly half of these families are living below the poverty line. With the rise of single motherhood, the criticism and discrimination has significantly increased. In fact, 7 in 10 Americans feel single mothers are corrupt for society. The stereotypes of a “typical single mother” have been getting in the way of a broad-minded understanding of what family …show more content…

For instance, one stereotype is that single mothers are careless and irresponsible. A cause for this belief is because most people assume that single mothers choose their lifestyle instead of considering other possibilities such as divorce or the death of a spouse. In 1994, US senator Rick Santorum scourged single moms at a town hall meeting by stating, “We are seeing the fabric of this country fall apart, and its falling apart because of single moms.” In addition to this statement, he claimed that single mothers voted Democrat because “the lives they were living were so difficult and urged Republicans to “build two parent families” in order to “eliminate that desire for government.” Another label is that single mothers are producing more offenders. This belief primarily stems from various studies taken with prisoners. For example, in 1987, "Survey of Youth in Custody," conducted a study and found that 70% of prisoners in the United States grew up without a father. Another study conducted with Wisconsin Juveniles found that 13% grew up without …show more content…

Similarly, some are faced with financial challenges while others are financially secure. In addition, some fathers are still involved in their children's lives, such as seeing them on weekends or holidays,while some fathers choose to be withdrawn from their childrens lives completely. Over the years, there have been many studies that show that the main dangers with single motherhood come from financial uncertainty and to a smaller degree, certain romantic patterns of the mother. A two-parent home that is economically steady with strain and conflict would be more damaging to children than a one-parent, financially stable home without strain and conflict according to McLanahan’s results. In truth, no household arrangement assures gladness or ensures

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