Whether we’re confronting gun violence or graduating, the president’s message to black America has largely centered on absent black dads. At best, it has been armchair psychology delivered from the bully pulpit. At worst, a sleight of hand that diverts focus from policy questions and avoids a real discussion of discrimination. Either way, the reduction from citizen to statistic has been frustrating.

It is worthy of praise, of course, that the president of the United States cares about the status of American families, and black families in particular. Mr. Obama has, however, reserved his lectures on fatherhood for black Americans. And recent events suggest that, for that constituency in particular, the president should have more pressing concerns.

Trayvon Martin had an involved dad, as did Mike Brown. Both fathers fought for a conviction or indictment, respectively, in the killings of their sons and lost.

The absence of Barack Obama Sr. is a major theme of President Obama’s life story. It’s a thread that runs through his autobiography and is, in fact, the inspiration for that book’s title. Over the years, however, it has become increasingly clear that fatherlessness is a dominant lens through which Mr. Obama views not just himself but also the nation’s black men and boys at large.