Next up in the Washington Post Black Men series is this article about single Black fathers.
When 19-year-old Donné McDaniel became pregnant last year, Tim Wagoner didn't consider marrying her.
"Nah, man, it wasn't really discussed. We're just friends."
They'd dated a year. The pregnancy wasn't planned.
Now their son, Zyhir, is 4 months old. Zyhir stays here, stays there.
It's 11 a.m., a cold fall morning. A darkened rowhouse in Northwest Washington, just off Georgia Avenue. "Cold Case Files," the television cop show, is the only electric illumination in the room. Cries come from the crib by the couch.
"You fussin', shorty? You don't want to be in there?"
A tattooed hand reaches down, pulls little Zyhir up to his lap. "The bottle? This it?"
Wagoner is 27, handsome, neat moustache and goatee, the oldest of five kids. Lean, muscular, not too tall. Maria, his mom's name, is tattooed on his hand. He lives with her and his sisters, making $7.50 an hour working at a teen recreation center in Brookland two days a week. He's studying for his GED.
As always, I provide no commentary even though I really should.
Question: What the hell is a 27 year old man doing dealing with a 19 year old young woman?
Answer: with his background, any woman his age with any sense wouldn't be dealing with him.
See, there's a problem right there.
Recent Comments