EDITOR'S NOTE: City Dads Group is working with longtime partner Dove Men+Care to create “how to” videos for the grooming products company’s “Dads Care” campaign. We will be featuring the videos and scripts our members appear in. This one features Brandon Billinger and his son, William, discussing what to do when a parent is unemployed. I have been laid-off twice, and it was a blow to my self-esteem. I felt like a failure to me, to my wife, and to my kids. It was one of the low points of my life. I knew that for my kids it would be difficult to understand the gravity of what just … [Read more...]
Are Today’s Kids Patient, Determined Enough for Black Lives to Matter?
George Floyd died at the hands of police officers just over two month ago. Breonna Taylor was shot and killed in March. Justice in each case moves slowly, if at all. Significant racial progress, I say out loud during a recent newscast, is taking a long, long time. My son, who is Black, sits next to me as I lament. He sighs and looks up from his phone, “Yeah, actually I had forgotten about the Black Lives Matter stuff until I saw the NBA and MLB players kneeling on Opening Day.” His gaze retreats back to his phone. I do not reply. I just sit, quietly frustrated. His comment made … [Read more...]
Help Kids with Autism Cope with Change with These Tips
EDITOR'S NOTE: City Dads Group is working with longtime partner Dove Men+Care to create “how to” videos for the grooming products company’s “Dads Care” campaign. We will be featuring the videos and scripts our members appear in. This one features Aaron Sheldon of our Columbus (Ohio) Dads Group, with a little help from his son, Harry, both shown above, talking about how to help kids with autism cope with a change in routine. I've spent the past few years sharing how Harry and I explore our everyday world, and, lately, how our world has changed since Harry's Autism diagnosis. Thanks to an … [Read more...]
The Talk: What Will I Tell My Black Child About Race?
I knew in advance of the interview that the question would be asked, but it still startled me when it was. Few Black fathers have a ready-made answer to: “When will you speak to your child about race? And what will you tell her?” This question came about in February, three months before the police killing of George Floyd, as part of a project I participated in exploring Black fatherhood. In the months since, it has echoed in my mind as the Black Lives Matter movement has commanded global attention and my daughter hits a new milestone: her sixth birthday. With each passing birthday, my … [Read more...]
Activism an Important Lesson for Parents to Teach Children
EDITOR’S NOTE: City Dads Group is working with longtime partner Dove Men+Care to create “how to” videos for the grooming products company’s “Dads Care” campaign. We will be featuring the videos and scripts our members appear in. This one features Jason Greene of our NYC Dads Group talking about how to get your children involved with causes and activism. Before I had children, I was on that social trajectory of looking at the world differently and wanting it to be better for everyone. Then when I had kids, I not only had a desire to see the world become better, but to be part of the change … [Read more...]
Racial Divide Crosses Generations in a Small Midwestern Town
The racial divide in the small western Kansas town I grew up in was very evident. Our community was practically 50% Hispanic and 50% white. When many whites would reference the Hispanic community and their culture, it was never Hispanics, it was almost always the pronouns “they” or “their.” It was almost as if by not acknowledging the race, it didn’t exist beyond the many Mexican restaurants sprinkled along the main street in our small town. I knew this racial divide existed, but internally this divide was never there. My best friend growing up was Hispanic. I spent many afternoons with him … [Read more...]
Teach Our Children Truth about Racism to Help the World Breathe
Protesters shouted from my TV. As I watched, my stomach moved its way up into my throat. I watched more. Tears rolled down the cheeks of people I didn’t know. I watched. Cars were overturned. I watched. People walked together and chanted. I watched. A young man shot. A man choked and dead. And I watched. My 10-year-old son emerged from his bedroom as the news played across the television. He stopped behind my right shoulder, watching as Eric Garner held his arms above his head and a police officer choked him and pushed him to the ground. He watched as Eric Garner gasped 11 … [Read more...]
Camper Journal Offers Glimpse into Family’s Past, Future and Growth
I am going through a long and sentimental (bordering on mawkish) ending of sorts that involves a 20-year-old Coleman pop-up camper. My wife and I bought it new just after we were married, well before we had the twins, well before I ever dreamed that was on the horizon. It’s old and worn now, ravaged by time and memory, many miles and many backyard sleepovers. I am trying to figure what to do with it as it’s barely roadworthy. We were so delightfully young and naive when we were purchasing it. We spent weeks looking at floor plans, considering size and amenities, finally deciding on a … [Read more...]
Keep Kids Occupied While You Work From Home with These Tips
EDITOR'S NOTE: City Dads Group is working with longtime partner Dove Men+Care to create “how to” videos for the grooming products company’s “Dads Care” campaign. We will be featuring the videos and scripts our members appear in. This one features Marlon Gutierrez of our Orlando Dads Group, with a little help from his daughter, Isabella, in photo above, talking about how to keep kids occupied while you are working from home. I’m not an expert, but both my wife and I have been working remote for the last five years: three-and-half of those years where we had this little munchkin around with … [Read more...]
Disability Rights Movement Can Inform Today’s Parenting
July 26, 2020, will mark the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination based on disability. Earlier this year, my teen daughters and I watched a powerful new documentary available on Netflix called Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution. The film explains how the disability rights movement evolved across decades. Though Crip Camp was released before the recent Black Lives Matter protests, its themes have much to teach parents at this critical cultural moment. The documentary focuses on Camp Jened, a 1971 summer camp for teens with disabilities. Many … [Read more...]
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