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David Lammy MP on black fatherhood
15 March 2010
Higher education minister David Lammy MP spoke about black fatherhood to a packed Committee Room in the House of Commons as part of the Runnymede Platform series.
The event, held on the Monday after Mothers' Day, also served as the launch for a 5-minute video about fatherhood made by Lammy and Femi Oyeniran, star of the films Kidulthood and Adulthood.
Chaired by journalist Lawrence Lartey, the discussion panel included actor Femi Oyeniran, rapper Tinie Tempah, actor and playwright Kwame Kwei-Armah and Dr Tracey Reynolds of London Southbank University.
In his speech, Lammy called for a more active form of fatherhood in the black community, and argued that a renewed focus on fathers would help tackle some of the challenges facing young black people such as educational under-achievement, disproportionate exclusion levels and high crime rates.
He also called for fathers from all backgrounds to remain in touch with their children whatever the relationship with their mothers. He said: ‘Between a quarter and a third of children with separated parents have little to no contact with their fathers. It is not just the structure of families that matters. It is whether fathers continue to contribute to their children’s lives.’
The Independent, BBC Online, the Evening Standard and Colourful Radio all provided coverage of the event, and David Lammy also appeared on the Today Programme on BBC Radio 4.
For more information about the event and the video, visit David Lammy's website.
