Holidays are nice. Progress is nicer.
The last few months have brought an abrupt and painful transformation of our federal government. We’ve gone from a president and an administration that championed women’s health, fair and family friendly workplaces and reproductive freedom to a president and an administration that are doing everything possible to reverse progress on all those fronts and sow division in this country.
Put simply, these are scary times — made all the more challenging because the Trump administration and its allies often try to hide their agenda and obscure their real goals. So, as we prepare to celebrate Mother’s Day this weekend, we’re taking stock and speaking out about what America’s moms do and don’t need.
Moms don’t need child care we can’t afford, a minimum wage nobody can live on, or jobs that offer no paid sick days or paid family and medical leave.
Moms don’t need Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act, health plans to exclude maternity care, and coverage that is priced out of reach as we age or if we have pre-existing conditions.
Moms don’t need 70 cents in wages for every dollar paid to dads, discrimination at our jobs when we get pregnant, or jobs with schedules that are unpredictable and unfair.
Moms don’t need Congress to defund Planned Parenthood, states to adopt more “bad medicine” laws, or Congress to drop the guarantee that health coverage include birth control without co-pays.
Moms don’t need law enforcement that targets immigrant communities, deportation policies that separate mothers from the children they love, or discourse that encourages hate against immigrants, people of color, the LGBTQ community or anyone else.
Moms also don’t need false promises masquerading as solutions. We don’t need the Working Families Flexibility Act, the Strong Families Act, the Workplace Advancement Act, or “safe harbor” initiatives — all of which are harmful initiatives touted by opponents of women’s progress.
What do moms need?
Respect. Fairness. 21st century workplace policies.
Moms need policies that bring us together, leaders who reject division and hate, and a recommitment to the principles this nation was founded on.
Moms need quality, affordable health care; secure access to reproductive health services, including abortion care; paid sick days and paid family and medical leave for all workers; and strong anti-discrimination laws coupled with vigorous enforcement.
The best gift moms could get this Mother’s Day is to continue the progress toward those goals.
Check out the tweets with the hashtag #MomsDontNeed to see some of the messages the National Partnership and its allies are sending this Mother’s Day.
