Every Father’s Day, I reflect on just how blessed I have been to have a father who has been a consistent presence and mentor in my life. My dad, Theodore Greer, instilled a type of confidence in my sister and me, and for that, I will be forever grateful. There are so many fathers, uncles, granddads, and father-like figures who put in the work to make sure the people in their lives are cared for and cared about.
My dad is the one who told me that I was naturally good at math because I had a “math gene,” and because of my last name, I was predetermined to be good at math. It wasn’t until I was in AP calculus that I realized there is no such gene, we are not a magical math family, and it was all a fable to make me believe I could do even the most complex things effortlessly. It is that type of vision my dad had for his two Black daughters that makes me so thankful to have a dad like him.
As I have written in this column before, both my mom and dad have given me one of the greatest gifts ever, and that is modeling the gift of friendship. My father is an active member of Omega Psi Phi fraternity and throughout my entire life, I have seen the bonds of Black male friendship up close. Those uncles have loved me as their own family and I consider their children my cousins. I have seen my father and his fraternity brothers make time for one another and their families, spending hours laughing, debating, playing cards, grilling, and attending dinners, graduations, weddings, and now funerals together. Friendship is indeed essential to the soul and my father has modeled that for my family for decades.
I am also thankful for the sacrifices my dad, and so many other dads, made and continue to make. I think about the money spent on abandoned hobbies, private schools, travel both domestically and abroad, and a myriad of small and large experiences that have helped contribute to the well-rounded person I am today. I constantly see so many dads, especially Black men, doing this quiet work without fanfare or praise, all while combating baseless stereotypes about who they are and how they show up for their families and communities.
This Father’s Day, I want to thank my dad and all of the other dads and dad-like folks who do the quiet heavy lifting to keep families afloat, keep spirits high, and keep our society focused on the larger goals ahead. Thank you, Dad, love you loads!
Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University; author of the books “How to Build a Democracy: From Fannie Lou Hamer and Barbara Jordan to Stacey Abrams” and “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream”; and co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.
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