The White House Working Families Summit was the biggest thing to happen here in ages for the circle of women’s rights advocates in which I orbit. So many things about it were right – a sense of jubilation, a racially and ethnically diverse group of attendees, a variety of ages, income levels, and a good [...]
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Family Caregivers, the Future, and Now
My friend and colleague in the fight for family caregivers, Janice Lynch Schuster, recently had a conversation with her children about what may happen when she becomes older. It went like this, as Janice wrote in Fierce Urgency of Now: Family Caregivers and the Future that is Upon Us for the blog Disruptive Women in [...]
Women Power the US Economic Engine
I wrote this piece for The Shriver Report, where it appeared originally on April 7, 2014. One of the biggest stories of the past 50 years has been the movement of women into the paid workforce in unprecedented numbers. The income mothers and wives bring home has changed how we live, what we buy, and [...]
Women In, Then Out, of Business
I’m going to be talking to a roomful of women getting their MBA’s this week, and I’m afraid I don’t have a lot of good news for them. True, they are in an elite group of about the one-third of Americans with undergraduate degrees. They will outnumber their male counterparts when they receive their masters [...]
Guest Post : Mothers Out of Options, Not “Opting Out”
I came across this fabulous opinion piece by Sarah Kendzior, a St. Louis-based writer on the Al Jazeera site. She graciously allowed me to repost it here in full - it is THAT good. You can see it at its original home right here. Thanks, Sarah! “The choice that is not really a choice” is one [...]
Mothers’ Rights Depend on the State You’re In
Those smart and savvy moms at A Better Balance have written a book that will be your “go to guide” for workplace policies relevant to your pregnancy, maternity leave, and working life as a parent. Dina Bakst, Phoebe Taubman and Elizabeth Gedmark are the authors of Babygate: What You Really Need To Know About Pregnancy [...]
Happy Birthday to the Family Medical Leave Act!
Wonky Washington is making merry about the 20th anniversary of President Clinton’s signing of the Family Medical Leave. This was the federal law that required some employers to allow some employees to take up to 12 weeks away from work, without pay, to deal with the birth or adoption of a child, a family member’s serious [...]
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 [...]
To Birth, Or Not To Birth?
It’s all about who is having babies - or perhaps more accurately, who is NOT having babies. The declining birth rate in the U.S. prompted much discussion, some of which you’ll find below. The only thing the writers agree on is that fewer women are opting to become mothers. Arguments differ as to why motherhood has [...]
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 [...]
Mothers Book Bag on Goodreads.com
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