Single parenting in the 21st century is vastly different than it was in years past. Done away are the days of the traditional American family with two parents, two children, and a dog, as the only model of a family. The American dream has evolved. Now it is socially acceptable to choose to be a single parent. There are many circumstances that would lead to a decision by mothers and fathers to choose single-parenting as an option or a result. Various circumstances, such as adoption, divorce, death, and incarceration can result in becoming a single parent. Children growing up in single parent households can and have become responsible citizens in his or her adult lives. Today, society recognizes the reality, that single-parent family households is considered to be as normal as two-parent family households. With the prevalence of mixed families, single parents are on the rise, if not for a small period of time between marriages. When married couples decide to divorce, the newly single parent may start a new family; thus creating mixed or extended families. In addition, the divorce rates in the United States are over 50 percent, making it less likely for two parents to raise a child. Also, with the increase of affluence in the United States, prior to the economic bust, raising a child above the poverty level has become much more of a likelihood. A vast number of African Americans were left destitute and in poverty at initiation of the Vietnam War. As many African American men were shipped off to fight overseas; African American women were left to take care of themselves and their children. When the war was over, a great number of soldiers; of all races, returned to America addicted to drugs like heroin and cocaine (American Military History, 2003). That had led to a rise in crime, and consequences. As a result many African American men ended up in prison.