Blogs
Lifting All Boats
With Father’s Day just around the corner, I’m excited to see the new FamiliesRising Web site get started. While co-producing THE MOTHERHOOD MANIFESTO film, my only disappointment was the number of men I met who didn’t see how these issues applied to them. As the father of a 13 year old, I know just how important it will be to entire American families to win the kinds of things that MomsRising has been working so hard for.
We Can Do It! (And we did!)
We did it! Washington just became the second state in the nation to pass Paid Family Leave this past Tuesday when the Governor signed the bill into law. And this is all because of YOU, the members of MomsRising, and our policy partner organizations! But, we're not stopping with Washington--we're working to roll paid family leave across the country, and American families are counting on us. (Read about how we won with quotes from members and legislators, and sign a thank you letter, in the text below.)
A Keystone Campaign in PA - Watch History in the Making!
Two of the more important things I have learned since becoming a mother are: 1) sometimes things happen for a reason; and 2) mothers, when moved to do so, will take the hill.
For me, BlogHer ‘06 represents a perfect union of these lessons.
I went to the BlogHer conference to talk about The Been There Clearinghouse, a site I co-founded a little over a year ago to help people displaced by Katrina. The Been There Clearinghouse took off when Hurricanehousing.org/MoveOn.org linked to us and sent evacuees our way. Within days, led by hundreds of networked “mom” bloggers, our site was sending help, one-to-one, to thousands of people.
The I Remember Mama Voting Project
Maxine Nelson, 65, impressed me the first time I met her. She is an African-American resident of Pine Bluff, Ark., a retired nurse and feisty warrior for social justice. She is also a national board member of ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, and a member of the Arkansas School Boards Association.
From A Mother's Heart
For Mother's Day this year Vocal Visions produced A CD, From A Mother's Heart, http://www.soundvisionsmedia.com/fromamothersheart.html , which is a compilation of songs done by recording artists for their Mothers. Not only that--they are dedicating a portion of their profits to MomsRising.org.
Maternal Profiling- People Are Talking!
When ABC did their story on maternal profiling, I was really glad about it. Not, of course, about maternal profiling, but the fact that a mainstream media outlet was picking up on this issue.
Employers, need help at work? Call in the SWAT team!
I wanted to point you to Sue Shellenbarger's latest Wall Street Journal column, "How Stay-at-Home Moms Are Filling an Executive Niche." I participated in the project at UNC's Kenan-Flagler business school that Shellenbarger writes about as a win-win-win for the school, MBA students, and mothers who were recruited and trained to serve as managerial role players and assessors.
The brief, intense experience allowed mothers to hone their work skills, step in to an executive role, and earn some income in a flexible work situation.
I wrote more about this experience on my Mojo Mom blog. One of my colleagues called us the SWAT team -- Smart Women with Available Time -- and we were able to assemble on short notice to fill important teaching roles for the business school. It was a fascinating project and I hope this business news coverage will remind employers that mothers are a fantastic resource to call on.
Get Toxics Out of our Baby Bottles!
I’ve never really been a purist when it comes to my kids. I must admit that they’ve consumed more than their share of Kraft macaroni and cheese. And when a friend announced that she was only going to give toys made of wood to her children, I just rolled my eyes.
Send a Burrito-Gram for Sick Days in Ohio
Want to send a "Burrito-Gram" to Ohio leaders? It's a fun way to make a serious point about the need for paid sick days in Ohio.
Send Sen. McCain Your Resume!
We woke up this morning to an article which made us think the calendar had been switched back 50 years while we were sleeping. On Wednesday, the Senate failed to pass the Fair Pay Act. What was almost worse than that defeat were the out-of-touch, misinformed -- and downright insulting -- statements about women.
Women shouldn't be discriminated against simply because they are mothers... but they are! Read about true experiences of American mothers, and learn how shared problems can be solved. Members can download the first chapter of the book today.
