Child care used to be a family matter, taken up household by household, depending on a variety of circumstances. But times have changed and child care now moves appropriately to the public policy realm. The experts at the Center for American Progress look at three available child care options – a stay at home parent, privately [...]
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A Room Of Our Own – Interview with Jocelyn Elise Crowley, Author of Mothers Unite!
With Mother’s Day less than a week away, my thoughts turn towards what change mothers can bring about by working together. Mothers are getting together all over the country, sharing their experiences and stories, and pushing our legislators to make our families stronger and safer. Researcher Jocelyn Elise Crowley, author of Mothers Unite! Organizing for [...]
Sheryl Sandberg’s Most Important Words
“Success for me is that if my son chooses to be a stay-at-home parent, he is cheered on for that decision. And if my daughter chooses to work outside the home and is successful, she is cheered on and supported.” Sheryl Sandberg, NPR’s Morning Edition, March 11, 2013. If you stacked up everything that’s already [...]
Without Us, You’re Nothing
Remember when Mika Brezezinski, co-host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, put out her book Knowing Your Value? It was advertised as a “surprisingly honest and unexpectedly revealing look at gender inequality in the workplace.” Mika argued that women generally underestimate their own worth and, for this reason, don’t advocate vigorously for themselves, and thus don’t receive the pay [...]
Ann Romney and the Caring Economy: The Politics of Motherhood
By: Riane Eisler and Valerie Young Who says partisan politics only results in division, discord, and gridlock? After this week’s media frenzy over whether or not Ann Romney was “working” when she raised five boys, a consensus of sorts has emerged. Both Democrats and Republicans agree unreservedly that childrearing is a very important activity, valuable [...]
Change & Opportunity
Mothers have a genius for on-the-spot problem solving. Sizing up a looming crisis in a nanosecond, we flip through our mental list of optional responses, then implement, discard, and substitute possible solutions until the crisis is resolved and order restored. Every single day mothers meet multiple opportunities for this kind of “rapid response” engagement head on. As the days multiply and the children [...]
The Best Job in the World
Why ease in to 2012 when we can take a flying leap directly into the epicenter of the maternal conflict? Sister blogger ButIDoHaveALawDegree graciously permits me to run her latest post here, in full, and I’m certain it will strike a major chord with you. I’ve not read a better expression of the maternal angst [...]
Child Care is Unskilled Labor?
Kelly Coyle DiNorcia is the author of this post. Her bio is here with another piece she wrote several weeks ago. In the car the other day, I was listening to NPR. Brian Lehrer was interviewing Robert Guest, the global business editor of The Economist and author of the new book, Borderless Economics: Chinese Sea Turtles, Indian Fridges [...]
For Mothers Who Do Too Much
Nine mothers walk into a movieplex to watch their lives on screen in “I Don’t Know How She Does It”. The movie bears scant resemblance to their daily experience. So the nine mothers duck into a nearby watering hole and do exactly what you’d expect. They order a pitcher of sangria and talk about it. [...]
Free Riding on Women – Part One
When you’ve got your finger on the pulse of the whacked-out wonk world which is Washington, you pick up on the wind shifts quickly. The topic of carework, what it costs and who’s paying, is popping up more often and in increasingly provocative language these days. Lately I’ve been looking at “Free Riding on Families: [...]
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