16 year old parents

The QC Times has an article in the Salute section today that caught my eye. While the main story is about a young black man raising his daughter alone, there are some interesting facts in the story from black activist Jonathan Narcisse and his "State of Black Iowa" study. The following are two excerpts from this story-

53% of black children in Iowa are raised by a single parent, 30% are raised in a two parent home, and 17% are living in a home where both parents are absent. Almost 90% of single black parents in Iowa raising their children are mothers.

The effect on a child of growing up in a fatherless home is astonishing. The National Fatherhood Initiative says more than poverty and race, fatherlessness is the highest predictor of juvenile violence. Fatherless teen girls are three times more likely to become chronic juvenile offenders; fatherless teen boys are 10 times more likely, according to the NFI.(National Fatherhood Iniative)

Now with that being said, remember, Davenport has the highest poverty rate with the highest percentage of female single parent families in poverty. Could this could be another link to our high crime problem? And even though this kid is doing a good job of parenting; isn't 16 just a little young to become a parent?