MOTHERS is a grassroots, diverse network of mothers, fathers, grandparents and other adults who are family caregivers. We are coming together to promote the economic, social and political worth and importance of family child and dependent care. We are bringing together a coalition of individuals and organizations to improve the economic security of those who do caring work.
In the past few decades women have made enormous progress, but many women who become mothers have been left behind. The work of caring for children and other dependent family members is still unpaid or grossly underpaid, disrespected, and unacknowledged by all of the major institutions in our society.
We believe that correcting the economic disadvantages facing caregivers is the big unfinished business of the women's movement.
Neither the workplace, family law, nor government puts much if any economic value on the all-important work of caring for others. The government does not even recognize unpaid labor in the home as "work," so family caregivers, unless they are employed, are left out of the basic social safety net. The effect of this disregard is clear:
motherhood has become the single greatest risk factor for poverty in America. The United States has the highest rate of maternal and child poverty of any advanced country. And millions of middle class mothers are economic dependents, despite the fact that they are the primary producers of our most important source of national wealth: our future citizens, taxpayers, and workers.
MOTHERS (Mothers Ought To Have Equal Rights) is a constantly evolving and growing grassroots initiative seeking to improve caregivers' economic status by calling attention to their essential contribution to the economy and to society. The initiative was launched in 2002 by a group of mothers, writers, and women's advocates around the country. The founders include Ann Crittenden, author of
The Price of Motherhood; Naomi Wolf, author of
Misconceptions; and the
National Association of Mothers' Centers, a non-profit, non-partisan organization with some 3,000 members and 40 mothers' support centers throughout the U.S. Our steering committee includes representatives of numerous grassroots women's organizations, experienced policy advocates, as well as ordinary mothers who have never been politically active before.
This website is designed to help mobilize grassroots actions on behalf of caregivers. The site serves as a clearinghouse to inform supporters of other interested people in their area, to publicize initiatives taken by other grassroots mothers' groups around the country, to suggest coordinated local campaigns, and to enable supporters to quickly contact their state and national legislators on key issues. We are also drafting national legislation, an omnibus bill to put forward a national agenda recognizing mothers' work and contributions. Check our "Take Action" section for the Economic Empowerment Working Agenda to learn more.
These initiatives, if enacted, would enable mothers and fathers to spend more time with their infants and children. They would increase family income, particularly the income of the family's primary caregiver. They would reduce the economic insecurity still plaguing many women, particularly in old age. And they would acknowledge that ours is a civilized society that values the work of those who care for others, as much as it values other endeavors. Join us today -- help finish the big unfinished business of the women's movement.
