VIA: Meetthefresh.com
According to Custodial Mothers and Fathers and Their Child Support: 2007, released by the U.S. Census Bureau in November, 2009, there are approximately 13.7 million single parents in the United States today, and those parents are responsible for raising 21.8 million children (approximately 26% of children under 21 in the U.S. today).
According to the U.S. Census Bureau approximately 84% of custodial parents are mothers. Of the mothers who are custodial parents:
- 45% are currently divorced or separated
- 34.2% have never been married
- 19% are married (In most cases, these numbers represent women who have remarried.)
- 1.7% were widowed
Nearly 80 percent of all single mothers are gainfully employed (49.8% work full time, year round and 39.7% work part-time or part-year); do not live in poverty (27% of custodial single mothers and their children live in poverty); and do not receive public assistance (22% receive Medicaid, 23.5% receive food stamps, 12% receive some form of public housing or rent subsidy, and 5% receive receive TANF).
Other statistics on single mothers from the report:
Most single mothers are 40 years old or older (39.1% of custodial single mothers are 40 years old or older) and are raising one child (54% of custodial mothers are raising one child from the absent parent, 46% have two or more children living with them).
Today we salute and honor all the single mothers holding it down for their children.
