The Vanishing Black Family: How Welfare and Feminism Made Marriage Optional and Children Vulnerable

A bold Christian voice challenges progressives to confront what the author argues is a long-overlooked racial disparity: the breakdown of the Black family.

In The Vanishing Black Family, Delano Squires examines rising rates of children born outside of marriage and growing up without a father at home, arguing that these trends contribute to disparities in income, education, and incarceration. He challenges political, religious, academic, and media leaders to reconsider the role of marriage and family structure in discussions of racial justice.

Drawing on historical research, Squires traces the evolution of Black family life from slavery to the present. He contends that welfare policies and feminist activism of the 1960s accelerated the decline of the two-parent household and calls for a renewed civil rights movement led by Black churches, HBCUs, and other community institutions to strengthen marriage and family life.

Equal parts cultural critique and call to action, The Vanishing Black Family presents a provocative argument about race, public policy, and the future of the Black family.