III

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. RES. 322

Encouraging and promoting greater involvement of fathers in their children’s

lives and designating June 18, 2000, as ‘‘National Responsible Father’s

Day’’.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JUNE 13, 2000

Mr. BAYH (for himself, Mr. DOMENICI, Mr. ABRAHAM, Mr. AKAKA, Mr.

ASHCROFT, Mr. BINGAMAN, Mr. BOND, Mr. BREAUX, Mr. BROWNBACK,

Mr. L. CHAFEE, Mr. DODD, Mr. EDWARDS, Mr. GORTON, Mr. GRAHAM,

Mr. GRAMM, Mr. GRAMS, Mr. GREGG, Mr. INHOFE, Mr. JOHNSON, Mr.

KERREY, Ms. LANDRIEU, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Mr. MURKOWSKI, Mr. SMITH

of New Hampshire, Mr. STEVENS, Mr. THURMOND, and Mr. VOINOVICH)

submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to

RESOLUTION

Encouraging and promoting greater involvement of fathers

in their children’s lives and designating June 18, 2000,

as ‘‘National Responsible Father’s Day’’.

Whereas 40 percent of children who live in households without a father have not seen their father in at least 1 year

and 50 percent of such children have never visited their

father’s home;

Whereas approximately 50 percent of all children born in the

United States spend at least 1⁄2 of their childhood in a

family without a father figure;
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Whereas nearly 20 percent of children in grades 6 through

12 report that they have not had a meaningful conversation with even 1 parent in over a month;

Whereas 3 out of 4 adolescents report that ‘‘they do not have

adults in their lives that model positive behaviors’’;

Whereas many of the United States leading experts on family

and child development agree that it is in the best interest

of both children and the United States to encourage more

two-parent, father-involved families to form and endure;

Whereas it is important to promote responsible fatherhood

and encourage loving and healthy relationships between

parents and their children in order to increase the chance

that children will have two caring parents to help them

grow up healthy and secure and not to—

(1) denigrate the standing or parenting efforts of

single mothers, whose efforts are heroic;

(2) lessen the protection of children from abusive

parents;

(3) cause women to remain in or enter into abusive

relationships; or

(4) compromise the health or safety of a custodial

parent;

Whereas children who are apart from their biological father

are, in comparison to other children—

(1) 5 times more likely to live in poverty; and

(2) more likely to—

(A) bring weapons and drugs into the classroom;
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(B) commit crime;

(C) drop out of school;

(D) be abused;

(E) commit suicide;

(F) abuse alcohol or drugs; and

(G) become pregnant as teenagers;

Whereas the Federal Government spends billions of dollars to

address these social ills and very little to address the

causes of such social ills;

Whereas violent criminals are overwhelmingly males who grew

up without fathers;

Whereas the number of children living with only a mother increased from just over 5,000,000 in 1960, to 17,000,000

in 1999, and between 1981 and 1991 the percentage of

children living with only 1 parent increased from 19 percent to 25 percent;

Whereas between 20 percent and 30 percent of families in

poverty are headed by women who have suffered domestic

violence during the past year and between 40 percent and

60 percent of women with children who receive welfare

were abused at some time in their life;

Whereas millions of single mothers in the United States are

heroically struggling to raise their children in safe, loving

environments;

Whereas responsible fatherhood should always recognize and

promote values of nonviolence;

Whereas child support is an important means by which a parent can take financial responsibility for a child and emotional support is an important means by which a parent

can take social responsibility for a child;
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Whereas children learn by example, community programs

that help mold young men into positive role models for

their children need to be encouraged;

Whereas promoting responsible fatherhood is not meant to diminish the parenting efforts of single mothers but rather

to increase the likelihood that children will have 2 caring

parents to help them grow up in loving environments;

and

Whereas Congress has begun to take notice of this issue with

legislation introduced in both the House of Representatives and the Senate to address the epidemic of

fatherlessness: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved, That the Senate—

2 (1) recognizes the need to encourage active in3 volvement of fathers in the rearing and development

4 of their children;

5 (2) recognizes that while there are millions of

6 fathers who serve as a wonderful caring parent for

7 their children, there are children on Father’s Day

8 who will have no one to celebrate with;

9 (3) urges fathers to participate in their chil10 dren’s lives both financially and emotionally;

11 (4) encourages fathers to devote time, energy,

12 and resources to their children;

13 (5) urges fathers to understand the level of re14 sponsibility required when fathering a child and to

15 fulfill that responsibility;
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1 (6) is committed to assist absent fathers be2 come more responsible and engaged in their chil3 dren’s lives;

4 (7) designates June 18, 2000, as ‘‘National Re5 sponsible Father’s Day’’;

6 (8) calls upon fathers around the country to use

7 the day to reconnect and rededicate themselves to

8 their children’s lives, to spend ‘‘National Responsible

9 Father’s Day’’ with their children, and to express

10 their love and support for their children; and

11 (9) requests that the President issue a procla12 mation calling upon the people of the United States

13 to observe ‘‘National Responsible Father’s Day’’

14 with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

Æ