Halle Berry Says Large Child Support Payments Are ‘Extortion’ And Don’t Reflect Modern Times

Halle Berry has caused a bit of a stir after posting an Instagram comment in which she likened large child support payments to “extortion” and said that they don’t reflect our modern times. The Oscar-winning actress has been paying $16,000 per month to Gabriel Aubry, her ex and father of her 12-year-old daughter Nahla, since 2014. However, she believes that amount is far more than is actually needed to care for the girl and she shouldn’t have to pay it.

 

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  1. Child support really is about supporting the child. After all, children do need clothes, food, school supplies, medical care, and many other things, and that costs money! However, to say that it costs $16,000 a month to provide a child with everything the child needs, especially when the parent paying that much has partial custody of that child and therefore already pays towards her care is fair? I kinda see Halle’s point here.
  2. Why should anyone have to pay their spouse to care for the child? Halle’s assertion here seems to be that much of the $16,000 per month she’s paying for Nahla is actually going to her ex to upkeep a luxury lifestyle. “It takes great strength [every day] to pay it. and BTW it’s wrong and it’s extortion!” she wrote. “I’ve been paying it for a decade now. i feel if a woman or man is having to pay support that is way more than the reasonable needs to help SUPPORT the child, i think that is wrong!”
  3. Halle believes her ex should be working just as hard as her to provide for the child. In other words, why should one parent carry all the weight when both of them created the child? “I understand some parents (man or woman) may need help, but i also feel in these modern times all genders have the responsibility to financially take care of their children and work hard and make every effort to do so,” she wrote.
  4. She thinks the law should be changed to reflect “modern times” as the old way of determining child support is wrong. “The way many laws are set up, people are allowed to USE children in order to be awarded money to live a lifestyle that not only did they not earn, but that is way above and beyond the child’s reasonable needs and that is ‘THE WRONG’ and where i see the abuse,” Halle insisted. “I can say i’m living it everyday and i can tell you it’s hard. i do totally understand the feelings of those men who feel they are and have been taken advantage of by the system.”
  5. While Halle has a point, it’s more complicated than that. After all, the official stats show that nearly 60% of fathers aren’t paying full child support and that 30% of single mothers get nothing at all from their children’s fathers. While there are exceptional cases like Halle’s, the system as a whole needs to change so that both parents are held financially responsible, not to cut down payments by the rich. She shouldn’t be paying for her ex’s extravagance, of course, but the more pressing issue is making sure single moms aren’t struggling, I would say.

What do you think?

Bolde has been a source of dating and relationship advice for single women around the world since 2014. We combine scientific data, experiential wisdom, and personal anecdotes to provide help and encouragement to those frustrated by the journey to find love. Follow us on Instagram @bolde_media or on Facebook @BoldeMedia
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