Friday 04 July

The Politics of Motherhood, Beyond the "Mommywars"

Becoming a mother gave me a new awareness of all sorts of things in life from the rate at which a baby's nails grow to why feeding strained prunes while wearing linen is a bad idea. Soon my enlightenment extended to the political arena too, got me engaged in issues like paid maternity leave and  environmental issues that affect children in particular.

I guess I've got a lot to say to those grand poobahs up on Capitol Hill.

The Maternal is Political: Women at the Intersection of Motherhood and Social Change is a collection of essays edited by Shari McDonald Strong that explore the common challenges and questions faced by mothers. You'll find a variety of voices from best-selling authors Barbara Kingsolver and Anne Lamott, to the first Speaker of the House with a uterus, Nancy Pelosi. The contributors and their viewpoints definitely lean to the left, but don't let that dissuade you if your personal political views differ as mine sometimes do.  The idea here is not to march in lockstep, but to inspire deep thought and personal action, even if it's just at home with our own families.

We're in the midst of a momentous political season.  Maybe we're not all ready yet ready to devour the New York Times Op-Ed page every morning, but maybe if we put down the summer trash long enough to check out this book and pen a letter or two to our congressional reps, we can, as Ghandi said, be the change we want to see in the world. -Julie


 

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