Tyrese Gibson and Black manhood

If anyone is familiar with the films "Baby Boy" and the "Fast and the Furious", then the name Tyrese Gibson will be familiar. Despite being a talented singer/actor, Gibson has recently made headlines for his disturbing, and often times erratic behavior.

In a tearful video post that has circulated online, Gibson gives us a view into his tumultuous personal life. In the video, we see him tearfully explain how he wants to see his daughter and that he has to pay $13,000 in child support for her. Furthermore, he explains how none of his millionaire friends are helping him through the situation although he has helped them. "What more do you want from me?!" he screams. With that in mind, one of the major problems with Tyrese's tirade is that it is reflective of the single-mother mama's boy syndrome that is prevalent in the Black community.

Since the turn of the 20th century, to the present day, black families have suffered the most from dysfunctional family structures. This dysfunction has sometimes resulted in out of wedlock births or other extreme circumstances. Unfortunately children, especially impressionable black boys are left to be raised by their mothers because the father has abandoned them or is otherwise locked away in the prison system. Although some single mothers have done well in raising dignified men who have grown to be positive forces in their communities that is not the case for the majority of men. So what does this have to do with the Tyrese situation? The answer to that is simple. Men such as Tyrese who are raised by single mothers suffer a void in their development as men. A mother cannot play the father role which is why the father is needed. Only a father can teach a young boy about values such as accountability, self-dignity, and integrity along with the right way to treat, attract, and co-exist with a woman. That is not to say that a woman does not possess and cannot teach those values, but the boy will eventually become a man and if he gets married and starts a family of his own, he must possess those three things to lead the family. Showing any form of external weakness will not be an option for him.

Tyrese's behavior is characteristic of the one he portrayed in the film "Baby Boy". I assume most of you who are reading this article have seen the movie. In the film Jody(played by Tyrese) was raised by a single mother and becomes jealous when she brings home a new man. This is ironic because he already has several children with different women.

We do not know why he cannot see his daughter, but posting a video about the situation on social media is not going to get you sympathy. On the contrary, it has done the opposite for him. There have been videos circulating online of remixes making humor out of his situation. Should we take joy in others pain? Of course not. Unfortunately, the responsibility falls on Tyrese to keep his situation private. Posting a video online only makes it seem as if he wants sympathy and attention, which as a black man in a majority Caucasian society, he will not receive.

What Tyrese must understand is that regardless of the friends he has in Hollywood, at the end of the day he is still seen as a black man who is expendable. This is why he cannot get help from his so called "millionaire friends". They do not care about you and are only interested in their own well-being. John Henrik Clarke said it best when he stated that the black man has no friends. Crying on social media will not change that. All we can do is keep pushing forward and fight for our own psychological and economic liberation. Black men must step up and stop expecting others to feel sorry for them because in the end, your tears of sorrow may be tears of joy to individuals or groups of people who take delight in your demise.