How Black Men View Baby Mamas

June 15th, 2010 - By admin

Anslem “NWSO” Samuel’s Naked With Socks On is an award-winning relationship blog. Each week, NWSO will share his candid thoughts on women, love, life and all the fun stuff in between with MadameNoire.

I’ve spent a good majority of my adult life trying not to have a baby mama. Not because I don’t want children, I just don’t want children with a woman that’s not my wife. See, when you do the wife and kids thing, that’s generally something planned and thought out. Even if it’s not, you’re married so having kids isn’t really that big of a deal because it’s expected at some point.

A baby mama, however, is a whole other ball game. Just look at the term itself. It’s detached and impersonal. She’s not called my wife, my girlfriend, or even my lover, but my baby’s mama. That doesn’t denote a loving connection but a relationship of circumstance. Generally, this is just a woman that happened to get pregnant and if not for the child y’all probably wouldn’t have any further contact after the relationship went south. Even if y’all are together, the fact a man would refer to you as his baby mama as opposed to his wife/girl shows that there isn’t much hope for the relationship evolving beyond two people that happen to share a child.

Now, as a single man with no kids, I’m in no rush to get involved with someone else’s baby mama. That’s not to say I’d never date a single mother but she definitely wouldn’t be my first choice. Getting to know someone is hard enough, but trying to do that around a mother’s 24/7 schedule can be downright impossible. Single folk like myself can just pick up and go out on a whim, while parents have to work around less flexible babysitting schedules. Since I have no kids I’m selfish and just not ready for that kind of situation.

Dating someone with a kid(s) is a package deal. When you go out with a single mom you’re not just dating her but her kids (and her crazy baby daddy). The last thing I’d want to do is get attached to a kid — and vice versa — only to have the relationship with his or her mother not pan out. The mom would understand why I wasn’t in the picture anymore, but depending on the age of her child, he or she may not. My father was never really around so I’d never want to be just some dude that came in and out of a kid’s life. It’s not fair to the innocent child.

Another factor to consider is the idea of jumping into a situation where there’s a built in family in place. This ain’t the Brady Bunch and I’d much rather have my own instead of playing daddy to the next man’s kids. Speaking of which, the only thing worse than the haphazard dating schedule of a single mom is the potentially intrusive baby daddy. Exes can be very possessive and that’s especially true if there’s a kid involved. I don’t need that headache and aggravation, so jealous baby daddy’s that will always be attached to the woman I’m seeing because of their kid is a major turn-off.

Overall, the idea of a baby mama just doesn’t work for me — be it my own or someone else’s. In the event that I got the wrong woman pregnant, I see it making for an awkward and unhealthy environment for my child. I’d much rather have a stable family structure with my wife than a faux family. And in terms of dating a woman with kids, there’s a possibility things could work out given the right circumstances, but truthfully I’d rather date someone with less baggage.

For more on NWSO’s relationship advice and bare-naked truth, as well as his popular weekly erotica series, Wet Wednesdays, be sure to check his daily blog, Naked With Socks On, here.

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  • Bianca, thats who

    He he he, i love it when silly women who cant or wont use birth control, but still wants to shag like a rabbit gets pregnant and gets offended when sane bc ppl like me call them stupid. CLEARLY this article is not referecing ppl who are single parents due to divorce or death but the pre-meditated victims, u ALL chose to have these mistakes, live with it.

  • Leali

    Not every criminal, loser or baby mama/daddy is from a single parent home. I would suggest that many people who are not being productive members of society are from 2 Parent homes. I'm a "Baby mama" and proud! My parents are still married and have been for 36 years, before I was born. I have great kids that I fully expect to be quality adults who will make good decisions. I f they don't I would not expect anyone to decide it is only because of my parenting. American needs to stop blaming evolving ideas for the problems within their society. There are many societies that have single parents and it is never an issue. In my humble opinion the problem is that of generalizing and passing the buck. Every child is a blessing realized or not. Those of us strong enough to take on that responsibility should get some credit instead of saying "that's what's wrong with the world". To try and fail is better than doing nothing and saying I have succeeded….at what? Nothing, lol! I know I am judged on many fronts and I often hear “you don't look like a single parent”. We can interchange look with, sound, dress, or behave etc. I am educated, travelled and successful, all as a single parent. I know many people who have prescribed to societal norm and couldn't accomplish any of the things I have. People will Judge, but we all know what happens in the end. Unknown. To the author here this is NOT what black men in America believe, this is what he believes. Just as every person wants to be judged by their merits, so do single parents. Dating yes is hard, nothing this man said is purely false but baby mama is not mutually exclusive form wonderful wife, mother or person.

  • Danyell

    Jai-luv,

    I completely agree with you especially the last phrase of the last paragraph..

  • Tamara

    You generalized all "Baby Mommas to be one that "happen to get pregnant" and many times that is not the case. Contrary to what you believe, myself and my daughter's father were together for six years and lived together for four years before we broke up. It simply didn't work out. I am now his Daughter's mother and we have no drama. He takes care of his share of responsibiltiy as her father and I do the same as a mother. I have worked full time for the past 11 years for the same company. I also have a B.S. in Computer Information Systems as well as a M.A in Teaching. I have my own place as well as my own car. So before you categorize all "Baby Momma's" as simply an ordeal out of convience, know that there are young, intelligent, fine, smart single mothers out there doing the damn thang!

  • Miss Jones26

    ^^^^^^ I meant to say the article was about an author posting his "PERSONAL OPINION" ABOUT DATING A SINGLE MOTHER……^^^^

  • internalbeauty

    @ Cristina

    if this means anything to you my condolences for your loss but i think the author was talking about women who have children out of wedlock, not the widows and divorcees. take care of yourself and those babies!

  • Cristina

    This article is very hurtful. I am a single mother of four. I was a WIFE!!! My husband was killed by a drunk driver and now I am a young single minority mother! Before you write such an article please take into consideration how one became a single mother. In my case I AM NOT NO BABY MAMA AND I DO NOT HAVE A CRAZY BABY DADDY as you term in your article. I such before writing such a piece look at the whole big picture and analyze every aspect of the situation. I loved being a wife by the way and because of an idiot driving drunk he destroyed my world.

  • BlackCowboyStudBrett

    'Baby Mama' is SUCH A GHETTO

    PHRASE!!!

  • sugaplum

    I personally wouldn't want to settle down with a guy with a kid or kids. Who wants that? Than I have to deal with the baby mama drama and so on. So for those that don't want to date a woman with kids well the feelings are mutual because I wouldn't want to be in a relationship with a man who is getting his check garnished for child support. It goes both ways.

  • black nationalist

    Internalbeauty. Let me see some pics and I'll think about it if you don't have any kids. Lol.

  • internalbeauty

    @black nationalist

    when are we getting married?

    :)

  • wowzer07

    Black women are not the only women that are single moms. Statistics do lie and they always show all black people in a negative manner. There are single moms in every race. I know many children who grew up with both parents who turned out to be horrible people. Some of their parents happen to be preachers and sanctified. Just because you are married and have children doesn't mean that your child is going to grow up a be productive. A man has a right to choose not to date a woman with children.

  • feburn

    Wow! How small minded of you to think that single mothers are the result of sleeping around, messing with no good men, and having no self esteem! I am a mother and the only reason I'm single is because I'm divorced! My children were born during a marriage and their father is the best father a child could ask for. To put every woman who has a child and is not married into your small-minded box shows your immaturity. And, it sounds like your mother was a single parent so it just goes to show how much you respect her!

  • LocLoverJD

    I am not at all offended by this article. BUT I am not in love with the term babymama. It seems like we should be able to come up with something better. HOWEVER, I think single men have the right to make these kinds of decisions about who they date. Just like it is acceptable for someone to say: type X is not my preference. I only date type Y.

    It can't be personal. It is about preference. The reasons laid out for not dating women with children are valid and almost responsible. In the least, they are legitimate reasons for protecting himself when dating and hooking up!

    Besides there are plenty of men that do not mind dating women with children.

  • lawbrat97

    I'm not surprised at all by this article…

    I don't date black American men, so their opinions are useless. Nor would I want one to assume the role of father for my children-if I ever have any. If you are a single mother-that's awesome. Your children appreciate all that you do. Besides single mothers, do you you really want a 'little, small minded man' holding you back?

    For the choir….what does being married have to do with anything thing? Married husbands cut out too! I know, you like the title…

  • BETTYEJ

    I didn't read the entire article, but to hear a man say that he didn't want a baby Mama was enough for me to say that I have nothing but respect for him. Too bad girls and Women don't have some RESPECT for their self and stop the drama of having babies without being married.

  • AcceptedException

    I’m a 30 something y.o. children’s mother (no baby’s mama); my children don’t live with me. Two are 18 and 20 and the 12 y.o. lives with his dad and dad’s new family(wife and her kids from a previous relationship). Every situation is different. I must admit I made a lot of bad choices during my younger days and I’m still paying for them. But who are you to judge me? and why? We are a group of African-Americans(family members arrived to the U.S. on Slave Ships) who just don’t believe in sticking together. Do caucasian men go around calling their children’s mommas or somebody elses children’s mother, babymamas? The same fellow who started this blog can find a wife, have children and she decides she doesn’t want him anymore…then what? You’re so damn right -It is your choice. Truly I feel we have a lot of weak African-American men who don’t support this class of women, wholeheartedly. Our men cheat so much; It is so accepted by society.
    It was 100% MY choice to leave my sons’ father. It was MY choice to leave a life of drug addiction and a toxic relationship. A man I became unhappy with after the children. I’ve been achieving greatness ever since! Before you go judging a book by its cover read the prelude, better yet the summary.

  • webcrawler

    I'm a single parent of 3 children. I appreciate a man being honest and saying he doesn't want to date a single mother. What I don't appreciate is men who act as if single mothers are just good for sex. The "hit and quit it" mentality. I had guys who approached me and said they were interested in sex, but not a relationship because they didn't want to be anyone's daddy.

    I have pretty much lost faith in dating and will be waiting until my youngest child is in college before I date again.

  • really919

    I am a 30 yo AA female w/o children and ,unlike some of the nouveau negroes commenting, I do not think that the fact that I don’t have kids makes me more desirable. I also think that the attitude of some of the childless people in this forum about sibgle parents is appalling. I’m not going to act like I’ve never been in a situation where it may have been a possibility – things happen, condoms break, antibiotics are the devil and unless you aren’t having sex, I suggest you sweep around your own front door before you judge these women. A lot of single people w/o children are just that because they have no qualms about flushing their responsibilities down the toilet. I used to work at an abortion clinic and believe me there weren’t a plethora of married women or “baby mamas” coming in – it would be those of you who turned your nose up like your ish don’t stink and quick to suggest that you were somehow “smarter” about your situation. Everything done in the dark comes to light and while you may slide by in this life, we all have to answer for ourselves in the end.

  • soulseal

    I am a woman in my late 20"s and I do not have a child, and I too prefer to date men with out children….It is just easier, Its sad but I recently just got out of a relationship with a man with baby mama drama. I don't think anyone should be upset about a man choosing to wait for marriage to have children with his wife. I personally am doing the same thing (waiting to have children with my husband) and have been, and that is why I do not have any children yet… It should not be rare in the black community that women are waiting to have children until there married. We are all adults and know how babies are made, its about being responsible