The fifth in a seven-part series by guest blogger Erin Barone for Family Forward Oregon, sharing insights from their action + discussion group The High Cost of Motherhood.
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The United States is one of only five nations across the globe that provide no paid maternity leave. The other four? Lesotho, Liberia, Swaziland and Papua New Guinea. Take a look at this visual map. It’s pretty striking. (To see the map, choose “Pregnancy, Birth or Adoption” from the left menu, then choose the “Global Map” button, then “Duration of Paid Leave for Mothers” then “Get Map.”) More…

Category: Parenting, Politics // Posted on May 9, 2012 // 1 Comment

The fourth in a seven-part series by guest blogger Erin Barone for Family Forward Oregon with insights from their action + discussion group The High Cost of Motherhood.
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“What am I actually earning after I pay for the childcare I need so I can go to work?”

That’s a question parents ask themselves all the time – especially mothers. And the answer is often pretty sobering. More…

Category: Parenting, Politics // Posted on May 2, 2012 // Leave a Comment

The third in a seven-part series by Family Forward Oregon; written by Lisa Frack.
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Our conversation during this week’s “High Cost of Motherhood” discussion + action group ended with a question to which we all, understandably, had different answers: If you could change one thing about the public policies that affect how motherhood works (or doesn’t work!) for you personally, what would it be? Of course our answers depended on our individual circumstances, but together they make a pretty good list of the changes many mothers need: More…

Category: Parenting, Politics // Posted on April 25, 2012 // 1 Comment

The second in a seven-part series by guest blogger Erin Barone for Family Forward Oregon.
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The recent comments about “stay-at-home” mothers by Hilary Rosen and Ann Romney have put motherhood squarely in the headlines. Opinions about what was said aside, these comments present an opportunity to look past the usual rhetoric and start talking about the deeper issues of how motherhood is valued (or not!) in our society. So, as a group of moms gathered on a sunny Sunday in Portland to participate in a discussion course called The High Cost of Motherhood and How We can Lower It, we did just that. More…

Category: Parenting, Politics // Posted on April 18, 2012 // Leave a Comment

The first in a seven-part series by guest blogger Erin Barone for Family Forward Oregon.
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I was shocked to learn that being a mother is the single biggest risk factor for poverty in old age in the United States. Yes, along with the countless joys, there are high costs associated with being a mother in our society.

It doesn’t matter whether you work full-time, part-time, or stay at home; none of us is immune to the cultural norms and workplace and public policies that impact our ability to support and care for our families –- and ourselves. More…

Category: Parenting, Politics // Posted on April 11, 2012 // Leave a Comment

Officially, the recession might be over, but many local families are still feeling the effects. In fact, according to Regan Gray, policy director at Children First for Oregon: “Today, 21.6 percent of Oregon children — over one in five — are living in poverty, the highest rate of poverty since 1993. …Almost twice that many are in ‘low income’ households, households that are just one paycheck or one medical emergency away from bankruptcy. More than ever before, children in poverty are the children of the college-educated, the former middle-class worker, the suburbanite and the homeowner.” More…

Category: Online Articles, Politics // Posted on December 19, 2011 // Leave a Comment

If you’d like to help get more family-friendly legislation passed in Salem – or if you’d just like to find out more about how legislation in Oregon affects families – AND you’d like to enjoy an evening out with an interesting and inspiring group of local moms (just like you!), you’re in luck!

The Mother PAC, a political action committee formed by moms to promote family-friendly legislation in Oregon, is hosting their second Moms’ Night Out next week. More…

Category: Events/Performances, Politics // Posted on April 20, 2011 // Leave a Comment