Bill Stephney was the co-founder of the rap group Public Enemy. He ran Def Jam and was music supervisor for movies like “Boomerang” and “CB4.” But his decade-long struggle for the custody of his son led him to become a leading advocate for family policy.
Stephney’s “baby mother” denied him visitation rights. But when Stephney found that she did the same thing to her next man, ex-husband Donald Tarpley, Stephney and Tarpley joined forces to rescue their kids.
But they found that America’s courts and child welfare system don’t think much of Black fathers, even the ones who’ve, as Stephney said, “had to turn themselves into a multi-tasking blend of Dr. King, Thurgood Marshall, Mahatma Ghandhi and Suge Knight just to obtain a meaningful presence in their children’s lives.”
In a NewsOne exclusive, read Stephney’s incredible story here, and asks President Barack Obama: If you’re going to scold “deadbeat dads,” why not help “denied dads”?
