The US spends very little public money on children, and a great deal of public money on older people. The reason for this has to do with our cultural attitudes towards privacy and the belief that raising children happens almost exclusively within the family. While that was likely true decades ago, most children now spend [...]
Archive | January, 2010
Dancing on the Thin End Of the Wedge
It all started with Madeleine Albright. As the first female US Secretary of State, her arrival on the world stage in 1997 seems in retrospect to have ushered in a sustained and expanding period of women in diplomacy. Usually “manned” by someone “pale, male, and Yale”, three of the last four occupants of this top [...]
Motherhood…Is The Issue
The Economist published a cover article in its New Year’s edition called “We Did It”, touting women’s 50% share of the paid labor force and asserting that “women’s economic empowerment is arguably the biggest social change of our times.” Quite correctly, the editors noted that while women generally have made strides, many barriers remain for [...]
You, Your Mother, Your Daughter
Why do we women assign ourselves the role of family caregiver? And what do we get for it? Economist Nancy Folbre considers these questions and their possible answers, in the context of looking after ill, elderly or disabled adults. Some women find it satisfying, yet many feel they have no other choice. Frequently, the cost [...]
Startling Stats About Motherhood & Poverty from Activistas
Our friends out west are hip to the same issues we’ve been struggling with. Start your new year with these thoughts from Activistas - Not surprisingly, it wasn’t until I had my first child that it occurred to me that motherhood in itself might be a serious economic barrier for women. Now, it seems like [...]
Mothers Book Bag on Goodreads.com
Join our virtual book club for those concerned with issues of equity in employment and economic s...
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