Yes, you read the headline right: Black Men Don’t Cheat.

That is what read across radio personality Charlamagne ThaGod’s chest as he modeled off a new t-shirt on Instagram that was gifted to him.

Charlamagne ThaGod proudly showing off his “Black Men Don’t Cheat” t-shirt.

Charlamagne has made it no secret that he cheated on his wife before but has been a member of the “Faithful Male Community” for at least two years. He also boasts the advantages of being loyal and faithful such as having peace of mind, professional growth, and not having the financial obligations to keep his mistress/side piece quiet.

Nevertheless, him wearing a shirt that said “Black Men Don’t Cheat,” opened up a controversial conversation under his comment section. I couldn’t help but notice the pessimism that came from mostly black women and even some black men.

Some of the comments read things like:

“That’s a lie!”

“Just throw the whole shirt away!”

“This is a whole lie…all men cheat don’t matter the color.”

“I’m gonna wear this to my side piece house.”

It was rather disturbing to see that so many women go into relationships expecting men to cheat because society has accepted this as the norm. Now don’t get me wrong, I’ve had my insecurities in relationships too because of the stigma attached to men and their inability to not be faithful. However, I believe to have a healthy relationship, there has to be a level of trust there that your man will not cheat. We cannot stereotype all men by saying they are all infidels, the same way we can’t stereotype all black women as being bitter and angry.

The message on Charlemagne’s shirt can be interpreted in many different ways. Some felt that the shirt was made to be sarcastic and that he was just being facetious. Others read it as him speaking this into existence to send “positive vibes” to our black men. It was also assumed that he was reinforcing this message to serve as an example to other men.

Here is MY interpretation and I promise you it’s simpler than you think.

The keyword on his shirt is MEN. Black MEN don’t cheat. I’ll break it down for you even further. Let’s look at one of the definitions of the word “Man” shall we?

Man (n.): One possessing in high degree the qualities considered distinctive of manhood (such as courage, strength, and vigor.)

One thing a man needs to remain faithful in a world full of women who don’t give a damn about your relationship status is STRENGTH: Strength to say no. Strength to walk away. Strength to understand that a couple of nights of fun isn’t worth losing your relationship over. Boys don’t have this type of strength because they are simply defined as being “an immature male.”

So no matter what your age, you can still be defined as a boy if you can’t understand that the commitment you made overrides the temptation you face daily. It’s an immature way of thinking to commit yourself to someone with the intent of not being faithful. If a man would rather be single and date without commitment, that’s his business. But if he chooses to be in a committed relationship while still “playing the field,” well, that’s just plain selfish and greedy.

I agree. Black MEN don’t cheat. Black BOYS do.  #fightme #thedatingstruggle