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No Child Support? Do NOT Send Him to Jail

Close Your Legs

By Shamontiel, published Apr 16, 2008

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Besides Gerald Levert's song "Funny," I didn't know much about the Levert family. When I heard the news about Sean Levert dying in prison, for some insane reason, I assumed he was already in prison when it happened. I had no idea that he'd just gone to prison for not paying child support. Then sadness swept in. That's a helluva way to go, and I wish that there was an alternative for men who will not pay child support. I know I'm going to piss off some women when I say this, but I absolutely do not agree with the idea of sending a man to prison for not paying child support.

First of all, ladies, stop acting like you just heard the news yesterday that you can get pregnant from having unprotected sex. I'm so tired of women with a billion kids complaining about deadbeat dads. Close your legs. Invest money in birth control. Go to free clinics to get condoms such as HIV/AIDS organizations like BEHIV or Planned Parenthood. It is one thing to be in a monogamous relationship with a man, you two have discussed children, and have discussed sexual protection, and then the sexual protection doesn't work. But the risks with condoms, birth control shots, and birth control pills are plainly stated. Word to the wise: Don't have sex with anyone that you don't consider parent material. Isn't there something wrong with the lackadaiscal attitude of women who say things like, "I want to be his baby's momma" without the possibility of wanting to be a potential interest's wife or girlfriend? Why have we, as women, become so content just popping out kids with no mutual emotional connection. Woman up! Wisen up!

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No Child Support? Do NOT Send Him to Jail

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Sean Levert

Credit: Urban Network

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Shamontiel, the writer of this article, has never had unprotected intercourse and currently volunteers for an HIV/AIDS testing/educational facility called BEHIV. Get tested today.

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Comments

Comments 1 - 15 of 22

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Shamontiel

Miss Chris, I'm so disappointed that your message was cut off. I wanted to read the rest, and I agree with everything you said. I do understand that there are times when someone has done every possible thing (besides abstinence) not to have a child and got pregnant anyway. Unfortunately, those are not the women I usually meet who got knocked up. I get the "Uh, we use condoms sometimes" stories, and all I can do is sigh. When someone is using contraception and ends up pregnant, that one is a little tougher though. However, I still strongly believe that purposely having a child by a man who doesn't want children is like buying a house and then being furious when he won't pay your mortgage.

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Posted on 08/30/2008 at 9:08:09 PM

Miss Chris

I think the Child Support thing is quite flawed to begin with. Even as an adolescent, I never sided with the women about this subject. I'm not saying I side with the men as well, but the men take a harder hit than necessary. I never understood the delusion of some women who are insistant on having a child by a man who is adament about not having children and when the man wants to leave, that woman decides, "Well, if he isn't going to stay and help with the baby, then I'll make him pay for it." I almost want to just say, "Dumb ass." He told you from the get-go that he didn't want kids and yet you're seeking some kind of vendetta against him for it? I think that's just a little backwards and mean. I had friends who were determined to have a child, even if the man said numerous of times he wasn't looking to be a daddy. So I feel sorry for the men who get caught up in it and it just upsets me to see such stupidity among my own sex. But yeah, I agree %100 percent with you about this issue a

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Posted on 08/21/2008 at 1:08:59 PM

B Web

i tatly agreee with u guys

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Posted on 05/05/2008 at 11:05:41 AM

Monique Finley

I totally agree with this one.

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Posted on 05/01/2008 at 12:05:25 AM

Shamontiel

Readers, I just read this article (http://www.blacknews.com/news/more_convicted_felons_allowed_to_enlist101.shtml), and one of my tightest male friends is going to Afghanistan because he can see no other way to pay for child support considering he had a felony charge for a credit card issue during his college years. Never mind the fact that he's in his 30s now and was immediately put on probation. To this day, he still has issues finding a job because of that, but somehow the American system has zero issues with sending him to Afghanistan under Bush's clock? Why can a man who was convicted of a felony be okay to go to war but not okay to hold a job in America, especially if all he had was a probation charge. Amazing.

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Posted on 04/24/2008 at 5:04:25 PM

Shamontiel

...I don't follow their careers like that, but it's not like the Leverts were on the scene constantly. I saw Gerald with LSG and a couple of singles, and that was about it. You think he was holding out?"

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Posted on 04/20/2008 at 11:04:47 PM

Shamontiel

K.L., here is my response: "Although I do see what you're saying about brothas doing well and not wanting to pay child support, it doesn't take into account the ones who said they did NOT want children in the first place and the woman had the child anyway or those who did use protection and it just didn't work. In addition, I can think of quite a few brothas who really are TRYING to make payments but just don't have the income, especially if it's with multiple partners. However, I do dig what you're saying about this being the one issue that brothas can control. Like I said in my article, if folks would NOT have sex with people they didn't think was parent material, a lot of this stuff would stop. I'm harder on women than I am on men with this issue considering WE have the final say in having these children. Ladies have to understand the intensity and responsibility of taking care of a child, and getting child support is only a small part of raising a child. As for the Levert family, I

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Posted on 04/20/2008 at 11:04:26 PM

Shamontiel

[CONTINUATION OF K.L.'S MESSAGE: "is good like I do or don't get these women pregnant and enjoy your money or make babies act a fool and get locked up.. See fair to me.. The system didn't set the brothers up with this one. This is down right lack of self control.. One thing I feel a woman who is laying around having babies because she believes her womb is an ATM, should be placed in a program where she has to work off some of the debt.. Some type of home based program like writing inmates, mailing school info something is she is living off the government and brothers doe,, I say more than 3 baby daddies and it THE UNWED BABY MAMA PROGRAM FOR YOU!!! Something like that has to be in place to prevent these children from being brought into the world like this."

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Posted on 04/20/2008 at 11:04:51 PM

Shamontiel

[THIS WAS AN INTERESTING MESSAGE I GOT FROM A FELLOW WRITER, K.L. AND I'D LIKE TO SHARE IT ON THE SITE: "As for your child support article, I agree only partial. Yes you were on point about the women having multiple babies need to chill, but many of the men that going to jail have multiple babies with multiple women, plus they are holding jobs and doing well when not paying for their kids, that is a crime. If a brother is down on his luck and the support falls behind he should be given help not jail,, But too many brothers are doing well and not taking care of their responsibilities. Shawn Levert's family should have pony-ed up and helped pay that tab he created when he laid with these women.. Come on,, Dad, has multiple kids, Gerald had multiple kids and Shawn too,, when does it stop.. I say if you are out here making babies and you too stupid to cover your meat and you fall behind then you have to pay the piper. This is one crime brothers don't ever have to go to jail for. Pay and al

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Posted on 04/20/2008 at 11:04:19 PM

Shamontiel

Hi Rose R., thank you for commenting. (Note: I just nominated you for placement on AC's front page [in the forums] for your article on Bush. Thanks again for writing that.) I definitely believe this should be unconstitutional. I don't think the government takes into account that sometimes it's not that a guy doesn't want to shell the money out. He just may not HAVE it, and again, distributing the money is really out of his hands if the woman decides to have the child anyway. I'm sure parents not talking to their children about sex may play quite a part in some of the accidental pregnancies, but I sincerely do not believe many women who have children they can't afford to have realize the intensity of taking care of another human being. From what I observe, it's rough. Is 2/3 of a person's paycheck about right for childcare?

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Posted on 04/19/2008 at 3:04:34 AM

Rose R.

They can sit in there for years and years. I am telling you this country has gone freaking crazy. Who made these laws. Wouldn't it make more sense to put them through other methods? It all goes back to responsibility though. I tell my daughter all the time that she ultimately knew what would happen. We knew this guy was about half full of crap. Don't let this happen again and bite the bullet and take care of your children. Sitting around waiting for his check isn't going to put food on the table. If you allow this, then don't look to anyone but yourself to do whatever it takes to be the best Mom you can be. Great article. Absolutely right on point.

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Posted on 04/19/2008 at 3:04:54 AM

Rose R.

I am so glad to see a young person say this. How crazy is going to prison for not being responsible. My daughter is a willing participant in a marriage gone sour with two children and a deadbeat dad. I have said the exact same things you said in this article. You ain't going to get a dime with the fool locked up. My question would be for law enforcement and judges, If you lock someone up for not working and paying child support, how are they going to come up with the money to pay it? Can you really lock someone up indefinitely for this crime? Isn't that called "debtors prison"? I think we should all do more research on this. This sounds very unconstitutional. A person goes to prison for assault with intent or major drugs or ripping off someone for a specified amount of time. Yet a person who has failed to pay child support though they have a clean record otherwise goes to prison. NO!

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Posted on 04/19/2008 at 3:04:23 AM

Shamontiel

...there are some women that think guys can pull money out of thin air. If SHE can't afford to take care of the kid, what makes her think HE has it? I've seen women debate about which mother gets more child support, and recently, a friend of mine is going into the National Guard because (even though he's a responsible father and spends time with his children), he simply does not have the funds to take care of them equally. That bothers me that a man would risk his life under Bush's watch when he really is TRYING because the government is set on pulling money from him that he does not have.

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Posted on 04/18/2008 at 7:04:12 PM

Shamontiel

Mmog37, no problem. I can guarantee you that I'm going to piss off a lot of mothers with this article, but I just cannot see the justification for sending a man to prison for a nonviolent crime. Honestly, I'm opposed to about 75% of white collar crimes, including paying taxes. And as you stated, if things like licenses being suspended, that puts yet ANOTHER glitch in paying child support. I have seen a pattern of men who are in the lower income bracket or barely surviving lower middle income who usually end up being deadbeat dads. It makes me wonder if they are deadbeat dads because of their economic situation or just lack of enthusiasm for having a child. I can't quite tell which way I'm leaning on this one because I can think of multiple examples of both. However, I believe only ONE parent can claim a child on his/her taxes and for government funds, so let's say the mother is doing so because she can't afford to take care of the child(ren) from her check. It blows my mind that there

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Posted on 04/18/2008 at 7:04:55 PM

mmog37

I found this very interesting, I don't think that there is any real legal recourse that can put an end to deadbeat dads...usually the good guys or the guys who want to do right suffer, while the real losers keep on being deadbeats. I have known people who were trying to pay their child support, but once they were in the legal system their license was suspended and it became very hard for them to get to and keep work. I have also seen vindictive and hurt women use the issue of child support as a means to penalize the dad. I want to thank you for posting this...you gave me a lot to think about and I will definitely come back to this in the future in the form of an article...I'll be sure to cite your article as the inspiration :)

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