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It’s no secret that as 2016’s presidential election approaches, Republicans need to lure African Americans, Hispanic voters, a growing minority, and other racial groups to the right to have any chance of winning. Unfortunately for the GOP, there are other alarming members of the populace that may foreshadow their failure in the next election.

Single mothers, who are overwhelmingly Democratic, are on the rise, according to the The Washington Post. A half a century ago, unmarried single mothers only represented less than one percent of America. Currently, a report by the Pew Research Center says, mommies who have children out of wedlock constitute 11 percent of the United States.

The last presidential election with Obama emerging as victorious sent unnerving shockwaves through the GOP. There was a revelation that appealing solely to White and rural-dwelling voters was not sufficient. The changing demographics of the United States are posing a threat to Republicans in office across the country.

Back in 2008, Obama gained 74 percent of the single mom vote. Now with the steady increase of moms raising kids on their own, the number of women  expected to vote in favor of the Democrats for the next presidential race is climbing as well.

These never-married single moms are generally African American or Latina and under the age of 30. It is certainly no surprise that Blacks and Hispanics heavily supported Democrats as exit polls demonstrated last year; the real shocker lies in the fact that white single moms are beginning to lean towards the left as well.

Among white single mothers, 56 percent voted for Obama while a feeble 43 percent favored Romney. Single mothers of all races who had a household income of less than $50,000 supported Obama with 79 percent of their votes.

Not only are single moms gaining potency in the presidential race, but young voters are as well. Exit polls of 2004 demonstrated that Republicans (under Bush) won 45 percent of young voters between the ages of 18 and 29 years old. In 2012, Obama had 60 percent of the young population’s vote in that same age range, according to CNN.

Republican activists acknowledge that the reasons behind the GOP’s failure to attract more voters lie in seeming closed-minded, Republican voices having no filter, according to a report on Politico. A recent political and economic study by The College Republican National Committee that looked at polls for the groups we’ve discussed here shows that, on economic matters,“We’ve become the party that will pat you on your back when you make it, but won’t offer you a hand to help you get there.”

Do you think the GOP stands a chance in winning 2016’s election with an evolving American demographic?

Solange Knowles has a lot on her plate. In addition to her singing career, she’s a part-time DJ and actress. The 26-year-old songbird is also quite the businesswoman. Earlier this month she excitedly announced the launch of her new record label, Saint Records.

“It is through SAINT RECORDS that I will be releasing my full length album, and also future music projects that I’m excited about sharing! Through Saint Records I will have 100% creative/artistic control & continue to passionately pursue my footing in this new musical movement,” the “Losing You” singer announced via Twitter.

But, out of all of the different roles that she assumes in her life, she revealed during a recent interview with Brooklyn Magazine that being a single mom is one of the more challenging ones. Check out some of what she had to say below.

On being a single, working mother:

“[Motherhood] is definitely a balancing act, and it is not at all easy. I do the best I can, which involves a lot of saying no to things, actually, and a lot of really organized scheduling and a lot of help, to be honest. That was one of our major incentives to moving here. We were living in LA and I was writing and recording this album literally between the hours of 9am and 3pm every day because that was the time that Julez was in school. We were completely isolated, we didn’t have any family or long-term friends there, and we didn’t have that support system built in there that we have in New York.”

On her son Juelz growing up surrounded by family:

“You know, my parents are here, my sister is here, my cousin is here, all my friends are here. We really wanted Julez to have the experience that we had growing up—being able to drop in on his aunt’s house and being able to hang out with Grandma and see our friends and have that experience of actually having a soccer game and having family show up. It’s such a beautiful feeling, but also having that village is a necessary reality so that I’m able to pursue my passion both outside of motherhood and outside of my career.”

On moving to Brooklyn, New York:

“I’m still a newcomer here, but I feel like because my family moved to New York when I was 17, that I have a longer and deeper connection. And I think about the times when I would come and visit them, and I would always spend a lot of time in Brooklyn. So it feels like an extension of me, living here, because I spent so much time here before.”

Turn the page for more photos from Solo’s funky photo shoot.

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A new study conducted by the Pew Research Center based on data collected by U.S. Census Bureau found that 40% of households with children under 18 years of age include mothers who are either the sole or primary source of income for the family. This is a huge jump from the date collected in 1960, which was a mere 11%.

The study goes on to note that these “breadwinner moms” are actually broken into two groups. 5.1 million (37%) of these women are married working mothers who just happen to make more than their husbands. The other 63% (8.1 million) are single moms. There is also a fairly large income gap between the two groups, with the median family income of the married mothers being $80,000 per year and $23,000 for the households led by single mothers.

The study also picked up on some other disproportionate demographics, including that a larger percentage of the aforementioned married mothers are White, college educated and slightly older. On the other hand, the single mothers were found more likely to be Black or Hispanic, younger and less likely to have a college degree.

The increased percentage of these “breadwinning moms” is attributed to the increasing number of women in the workforce. Women currently make up nearly half (47%) of the United States workforce.

Source: Twitter

Brittni Mealy, model, business owner and alleged mother of rapper Future’s 2-month-old son recently sat down with the YBF to discuss the difficult time that  the rapper has given her since he signed his record deal, in addition to his refusal to assist in the co-parenting of their son. During her interview, she also revealed some rather interesting details about the rapper, including how he disconnects from his babies’ mothers after the child is born and why she thinks Ciara should watch her back. Check out some of what she had to say.

On Future turning into a different person after he got signed:

 ”I even remember the day he got signed, he called so excited and said “Bae my dream just came true!” But, of course, his dream became my nightmare. With his success, came the lies, the cheating, the deceit. He stopped coming home every night. The more successful he got, the more comfortable he was with mistreating me and disrespecting our home. I even found out he had another family 4 miles away on the same street we had moved on! I didn’t end the relationship when I found out, because I was in too deep in love and he promised he was getting rid of the other “situation” as he called it…when the time was right. ”

“I know the real “him”, the part she [Ciara]  doesn’t know. They are just “honeymooning” right now. Everything always seems perfect in the beginning.”

On Future fathering 3 children by 3 different women:

“I knew about his kids, he has never disowned any of them. But, I do think 3 kids by 3 different women is a pattern of some sort. He obviously loves the mothers, but something about adding a kid to the equation changes things for him.”

On being able to support her son on her own:

“Yes, I am perfectly capable of taking care of my son by myself but, why should I have to?? He is OUR son and Future should do his part! We were together when we conceived our child. And, although we aren’t now, I feel like we can co-parent, live our lives apart and take care of our child without there being any “BEEF”.”

On Future cursing out her mother:

“He made a phone call to my mom (obviously feeling like he can still control what I do, even though we are not together anymore ). My mom has always been kind to him and usually defends him. Because, I refused to speak to him…he proceeded to curse at my mother and call her out of her name! I was upset and emotional because, I am raising our newborn son and he has stopped assisting me with his care and now, he thinks he can disrespect my mother. It was too much. My son and my mother are dear to me. And, he crossed the line. We simply don’t deserve to be treated that way. “

On subliminal Twitter “beef” with Ciara:

“No! No twitter beef!  I tweeted two words HAS BEEN and the world and the media took it and ran with it! Apparently, they wanted to associate her with being a has been. That is NOT what I said. I think she subliminally replied, feeding into their negative energy. I stopped tweeting because, I don’t have the time or energy to entertain an imaginary “beef”. Bye to all that!”

What is your take on all of this?

Jazmine Denise is a news writer for Madame Noire. Follow her on Twitter @jazminedenise.

Did you know that in addition to Occupy Wall Street, there is a movement working along side it called Occupy the Hood? Meant to address the lack of diversity in the better known movement, Occupy the Hood seeks to focus on the economic devastation taking place in black communities. Learn more about the dynamic black mother who is leading this movement in her local community while organizing the national effort online in this piece from HuffPost Black Voices:

On Monday, Ife Johari Uhuru lifted the hood of one of her shop’s high-intensity hair dryers and asked her client to take a seat. As soon as the woman was comfortable, Uhuru grabbed the laptop computer sitting nearby. Uhuru, a Detroit hairstylist and burgeoning activist, had other work to do.

Uhuru, 35, is one of two core coordinators behindOccupy the Hood, a group that aims to bring the concerns of people of color to the global Occupy Wall Street movement. On Monday, she needed to add a few palliative posts to a debate raging on Occupy the Hood’s Facebook page about which issues the group should rally around. She needed to design and print a new flyer for Occupy the Hood’s ongoing food and clothing drive for Detroit’s poor. She needed to convince a few more businesses around town to serve as collection points for the goods. And, in about 20 minutes, Uhuru’s client’s hair would require her full attention. The woman was there to have her dreadlocks washed, deep conditioned and re-twisted.

“I’m a single mom, a small business owner, a daughter, a neighbor. I have a lot of obligations,” said Uhuru, who is black and lives in Novi, a community about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Detroit. “But trying to foster something where people who look like me, who have the same concerns as me are seen and heard? Doing that, I’ve discovered a whole new kind of busy.”

If you’ve recently split with your husband or significant other how long should you wait before you hit the dating scene again? Does that number change when you add children to the mix?

Dating after the end of one relationship is tricky enough but when children are involved it becomes even more complex? When do you introduce your new beau to the kids? What do I tell my kids to call the new man?

These are a legit questions that Your Tango.com answers. There are even some additional ones I’m sure you’ve been wondering. Check them out over at Your Tango.com.

Even though I’m not that old, I am pretty much old school when it comes to how little girls and boys should dress and behave. I was raised in the era of “stay out of grown folks business” and my mother never shopped in the same clothing store as me. In my hay day parents were parents and children were children, there was no blurry line or popularity contest between the two.

Read the rest of this entry »

From late 2008 through 2009, I went on a string of dating single moms.

The run wasn’t intentional…Shyte just kinda landed that way. But it was all very insightful for a poonhound in his late 20s with no kids and who knew with no qualifier that he was not ready to have any either. Hell, I’m 30, happily living in sin and still not ready to have any munchkins of my own.

I’ve always respected the plight of the single mom (if not always the reason she’s a single mom), and I do so now more than ever. I learned that no single mom I know is a fan of banging out mad hours at work only to come home to “Yo Gabba Gabba” episodes on repeat seven days a week; they’re all looking for a little bit of adult-rated excitement, if not the man that will complete her fractured family.

But, despite what society projects, it’s not all about the single mom and what SHE wants. We are the ones who have to date these women. Many young dudes stay away from single moms, but I was never afraid to settle down with one. Had I done so at 25, however, I might have gotten caught up in a manner that I wouldn’t allow today.

Here’s a list of non-negotiables that I’d need in place should I ever go down that road again:

In a recent article in The Washington Post, Colbert I. King ponders the idea of celebrating Black History Month at a time when we’re continuing to witness the disintegration of the Black family. “When Black History Month was celebrated in 1950, according to State University of New York research, 77.7 percent of black families had two parents,” he wrote. “As of January 2010, according to the Census Bureau, the share of two-parent families among African Americans had fallen to 38 percent.”

Although the number of two-parent households has fallen across the board since changes in the work force and the economy have made it more feasible for households to rely on one income, the image of the single black mother stands out as a common reality as compared to other ethnicities. In a way, it has become the norm and what is expected.

King uses data from the D.C. Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, to illustrate the connection between the short and long-term effect of single parent families on offspring.

To read more, continue on to The Washington Post

At the Frayser High School in Memphis, TN 90 students are either currently pregnant or have had a child this school year. These teen moms account for 20 percent of the school’s female population. Those are shocking numbers, but apparently the teen parent issue stretches beyond the walls of the school.

According to AOL Black Voices–last year, over 2,100 girls between the ages of 10 and 19 gave birth in Shelby County where the school is located.  Yeah, you read that right–10 years old. Shelby County is predominately poor and black.

Researchers and community activists have started a new campaign called “No Baby!” that they hope will help curb the skyrocketing teen pregnancy rate. Too little, too late?

Read more about “No Baby!” and watch a video clip of a 16-year-old mom by clicking here.

Do you have teenagers in your life? How do you approach the topic of sex with them?