By Boyce Watkins, PhD on Jun 16th 2010 1:08PM
Filed under: Dr. Boyce Money, News
The country is well aware that the Obama family is full of basketball fans.
President Barack Obama has been seen throwing up a rusty jump shot against members of his cabinet, and Michelle is reportedly slated to attend game seven of the NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics. Well, the love of basketball apparently passed down to the Obama children, Sasha and Malia, who gave their dad a gift of the ages.
This week, it was reported that the two girls decided they wanted their father to have a custom-made Lakers jersey. When they told AEG President Tim Leiweke what they wanted to get their father, he went down to the Lakers store and had a jersey made for President Obama right on the spot. After the game, the jersey was signed by Lakers coach Phil Jackson. Not a bad gift -- I can't get one of those for my dad.
With Father's Day approaching, I can say that I am relieved that President Obama is not on the campaign trail again. I say this because it was two years ago this week that the president gave the Father's Day speech of a lifetime, in which he spent the entire speech describing how black males are refusing to be good dads. I found this speech to be appalling, not because there aren't significant fatherhood problems in our community, but because he was painting black men with a broad brush by presuming that we are the ones who are solely responsible for the breakdown of black families. The president even engaged in the disingenuous task of relating black male American parental abandonment to that by his own father, who is not actually an African American. So, not only are African American men being blamed for what we do, we are being blamed for what black men around the world are doing, too.
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Pampered Princesses
Malia and Sasha Obama: The unexpected stars of their dad's presidential campaign, Malia and Sasha Obama dazzled with their beauty, fun personalities and seemingly down-to-earth natures. Since their worldwide introduction nearly two years ago, everything about the first daughters, from their clothes to their hair to their school, has been incessantly documented and admired. But through it all they've seemed to handle the pressures of life in the spotlight with good nature and grace.
Pete Souza, Official White House Photo
AFP
BlackVoices.com
Pampered Princesses
Jessie James and D'Lila Star Combs: The two littlest Combs' are spared no expense in their Los Angeles upbringing: shopping sprees at hip boutique Kitson, gold nameplate necklaces before they were even able to read their names, plus all the love and attention from their former model mommy Kim Porter and all-around-fly-guy dad Sean "Diddy" Combs, not to mention a host of older siblings (between mom and dad they've got four). And just because they're the youngest of the clan, doesn't mean they come last, especially since they're always dad's guest stars of choice for Diddy TV.
Pampered Princesses
Ming Lee and Aoki Lee Simmons: Born to fashion and hip-hop royalty Kimora Lee and Russell Simmons, these little stars aren't just princesses; they're moguls-in-training. And since the girls have been in the Phat Farm-Baby Phat spotlight practically since birth (their mom ends all of her runway shows with the girls in tow), it's no wonder that they now star in Baby Phat Girlz campaigns and host their own fashion shows.
Pampered Princesses
Ava Dash She was born into a pedigree fit for a princess, what with fashion designer mom Rachel Roy and music and fashion exec dad Damon Dash, not to mention "Uncle Jay-Z," who's godfather to her older brother, Damon Dash Jr. And Ava seems to enjoy living the good life in Manhattan with her mother and younger sister, Talullah, attending movie premieres, fashion shows, posing for magazines and traveling the world.
Pampered Princesses
Keke Palmer: Laying claim to the black Disney princess throne handed down by Raven-Symone, Keke stars in the hit show 'True Jackson, VP' while still making time for a film career ('Akeelah and the Bee') and a budding singing career (she sings the theme song for 'True' and her work has also appeared on the soundtrack to 'Night at the Museum'). Beyond her talent, she's growing into a media favorite as well, with images from her life out-and-about in L.A. constantly popping up in blogs and magazines.
Pampered Princesses
Malia and Sasha Obama: The unexpected stars of their dad's presidential campaign, Malia and Sasha Obama dazzled with their beauty, fun personalities and seemingly down-to-earth natures. Since their worldwide introduction nearly two years ago, everything about the first daughters, from their clothes to their hair to their school, has been incessantly documented and admired. But through it all they've seemed to handle the pressures of life in the spotlight with good nature and grace.
Pampered Princesses
Willow Smith: Blessed with her mother Jada Pinkett-Smith's beauty and dad Will Smith's personality, Willow is a princess to watch. She grabbed media attention in 2009 when she performed at the Nobel Peace Prize concert with only half of a head of hair, a la older stars like Cassie and Rihanna. Along with brother Jaden, she's also a mini-philanthropist, serving as a Hasbro youth ambassador to project Zambia, which helps African kids orphaned by AIDS.
Pampered Princesses
Reginae Carter: Rapper Li'l Wayne's oldest child spent the first decade or so of her life in the background, but in the past couple of years she's stepped into the spotlight with appearances on her mom's reality show, 'Tiny and Toya,' performing in the hip-hop group OMG Girlz (which also features Tameka "Tiny" Cottle's daughter Zonnique) and even appearing onstage with her dad and rapper Drake during 2009's BET Awards.
Pampered Princesses
Vanessa and Angela Simmons: Like their younger cousins Ming and Aoki, Rev. Run of Run DMC's daughters were raised in hip-hop's royal family. And as the eldest heirs to the family fortune, the sisters have already hit the ground running to make the family proud. In the past few years they've starred in two reality shows ('Run's House' and spin-off 'Daddy's Girls'), launched a successful accessories line, Pastry, and grown into bonafide socialites, hitting shows during New York Fashion Week and attending events in Los Angeles.
Pampered Princesses
Yara Shahidi: With her starring role in 'Imagine That' alongside Eddie Murphy and Nicole Ari Parker and last year's Gap Kids campaign, Yara's well on her way to mainstream stardom. Born to model Keri Salter-Shahidi, she started modeling when she was just a baby with her mom (the two even appeared in a McDonald's commercial together) before venturing into acting. She's starring in another film this year, 'Unthinkable' with Sam Jackson, so we're betting this little princess is here to stay.
Pampered Princesses
Chudney Ross: The daughter of Diana Ross and music exec Robert Silberstein, Chudney makes no apologies for her privileged background or the instant fame it's brought her. Like older sis Tracee Ellis Ross, she doesn't let her superstar mother do all the work though. After graduating from Georgetown University she taught for years in public schools before moving to Los Angeles to take up her post in the city's famous daughter club.
Pampered Princesses
In very few situations is there an acknowledgment that it takes both a man and a woman to have a child, and it also takes both parents to ruin a relationship. Additionally, there are many fathers who are crushed by the economic pressures of a child support system that cares more about collecting and controlling our money than it cares about keeping families together. Given that black men are the most likely to be unemployed and the most likely to be incarcerated, these challenges continue to make it difficult to keep families together.
On the flip side, there are some fathers out there who are not doing their jobs, and some mothers who are alienating their children from their dads. While each situation is different, I encourage those of us who care about kids to realize that you don't have to have a child in order to be a parent. If there is a child who needs guidance, love or support, make yourself available to them as if they were your own. They say that it takes a village to raise a child. Well, it also takes a village to overcome the curse of the single-parent household. Focusing on these issues diligently will be vital to the economic and sociopolitical stability of the African American community.
Finally, I am hopeful that on this Father's Day, we can focus on the good dads and use them as models for the bad ones. You don't say terrible things about someone on their birthday, so I don't want to hear anyone waste my Father's Day by telling me what a terrible person I am. Black fathers come in all shapes and sizes, and the idea that women are doing their jobs perfectly while every single dad is falling asleep at the wheel is both uninformed and counterproductive. We've all got to make adjustments to save our children.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here. 
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Comments: (12)
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By: Real Talk on 6/16/2010 2:41PM
Oh well, there goes the Presidents surprise on Fathers Day! I am sure the girls appreciate this info put on full blast before they get to surprise their dad after all that effort. SMDH!
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By: DCP on 6/16/2010 3:09PM
If you are not a bad dad you should not take offense to what was said. I'm tired of Black men being offened about everything and not doing something to correct the situation. If you are a good dad and know a bad dad then help him to be a good dad. This way you won't hear speeches like the one President Obama made. I'm sure the President was not trying to be demeaning towards the good dads. Help the bad dads take responsibility and stop complaining.
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By: johnny on 6/19/2010 1:05AM
look, Obie is the first female president. much like clinton being called the first black president. Now, you can take offense in what I have to say. Obie on mother's day, should have demeaned the aboortionist mothers, the abandonment mothers, the adopting-out mothers {you know--mothers who are allowed to by-pass informing the bio-fathers of the child or the ones who let the bio-fathers know about the child, yet rather than giving the child to the father {yeah, yeah- I know the sorry excuse: the fathers do want the responsibility of the child anyway. Boy, let's give the fathers the first option and see if fathers would raise the child/ren rather than arbitarily assuming the worst. Oh, I know. You don't want a woman forced into motherhood against her will. Damn, you know that is the most important part, not forcing women to be mothers against their will, but o.k. to force men to be fathers against their wills]. Now, your other comment about good fathers teaching your so-call bad fathers how to be good fathers. Funny, have you found many good mothers trying to help bad mothers be good mothers? In your believe about good fathers; you really want the good fathers to go on a strong and unforgiving assault on so-call bad fathers. Verbally, if not physically attacking the so-called bad fathers. You want them to pay for their offsprings--even if it means working 24 hours a day and with no house over their heads. You want them so poverty stricken that they feel the punishment of having children they could not afford. Yet you become a sympathic and caring person for mothers who put themselves in the situation, as the so-called bad fathers. Our government caused this destruction in the family, so grow up and study what government actions and policies led to where we are. President Obie should be ashame of himself, yet efeminate males don't care to research the truth--they follow whatever is laid in front of them. I bet Obie would not address mothers like he did the fathers. Frankly, I am not offended. He does what is expected of him. He is following his role and destiny. He may not be the anti-Christ, but he will cause even greater to this country as the house and senate of today and the past.
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By: dreameagle on 6/17/2010 3:24PM
okeh, time to grow up;
my president was 1000% right--you just missed it;
some things cross every boundary, every stratum and classification that can be devised;
one of those things is everywhere, EVERYWHERE, the man is the head of the family;
what that means is simply this, you make a family, you're head of it--you build the ship, you're captain of it;
now if a storm should happen to run that ship aground while you are off vacationing 1000 miles away, guess what--you are STILL captain;
harsh as that may sound, it cannot be mediated by the various social, political and economic guns designed and brought to bear exclusively on your ship as mine--a drowning wife/mother and daughters/sons cannot and will not care who is sinking them--they are too busy trying to survive the burning and suction of the sinking ship;
and as any wife/mother forced to be both parents in this world today can readily attest, survival in no way even begins to equate to prosperity;
it is the harshest of realities, we continue to beat our chests and shake our manes as minority men, but we do not still contemplate the long term effect beyond the joy of the creative act--i know, because i did it, too, in my youth, and it will remain to my last whimper the single greatest regret of my life;
one last thing--as captains, we are obligated to look out for the crews of our fellow captains, as well, because no captain comes before anyone's crew--and that is another thing that crosses all lines and limits;
it took over half my life to learn all daughters are special--and that all women are or were daughters;
all women;
i did not hesitate to teach that to my sons;
perhaps the day will come when all men, all captains, teach that to their sons;
then every day will fully and truly be Father's Day;
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By: amina on 6/17/2010 12:31PM
Imus, DL Hughley, SLim Thug, Howard Steren and Chad Ochocinco make insulting comments about Black women for no apparent reason. When asked by TMZ why he did not want Black girls on his new dating show he said "Well, I am a man of class and distinction"!!
What about this attack of Black females ???
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By: Brenda D on 6/18/2010 1:00AM
To BillSchrier, the comment you made about the First Family is racist & degrading. What happened to respecting the President of our country? It is people like you that keep racism alive. your mind needs fumigating, and your brain apears to be drywall that needs replacing.
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By: patrick mccoy on 6/18/2010 11:59AM
let,s keep our president in prey,he has a lot of work do....
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By: charlee on 6/18/2010 1:18PM
Tried of men whining about how somebody says they aren't good dads! Heck when kids get in trouble they always blame the moms for not being there cause she was out working a hundred jobs or chasing boo boo the clown or just plain cuddling these little boys too much....it is enough blame to go around....if you want better you do better! But you won't get better until you face the hard facts and that is black families are more than likely to be headed by a woman because we as woman have too much pride sometimes and think we can be both momma and daddy...and we can't ever take the place of men in our children's lives....and black men need to stop coming to the well to get what they want then when they take away a little extra they want act a fool and not take responsibility for the child they help create...man up and do the right thing! So we all need to grow the he// up and do right by these children that we bring into this world! There has never been a problem with the villager helping to raise these kids...it is the problem with individual tribe members they won't do their share!
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By: Skeewee on 6/19/2010 3:50AM
I was and am a woman who was highly offended by Obama's speech on black men as fathers. My father is and always will be a good father and so is my son for his boys. I wanted to curse his black a@@. Fisrt of all his daddy was African and speak only of yours. There are plenty of men of every ethnicity that are not holding up their weight.
Too publicly disrespect men who got out there and campaigned for you, was the same bull crap he did to Rev. Wright in Chicago.
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By: kp on 6/19/2010 10:52PM
who cares what black men or black people think about what president obama said if it's true. as much as i love black men many of them have major faults, and parenting (commitment, responsibility)is one of them. also, obama's father was an african american. he was an african in america. we are the one's who are not african american. the term is a double nationality, not a race. we are black people, not africans.
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