Posts Tagged: parenting
The Perils of Black Motherhood and Police Violence
“We are black people and we shouldn’t have to feel like this,” “We shouldn’t have to protest because you all are treating us wrong. We do this because we need to and have rights.” “Our fathers and mothers are killed and we can’t even see them anymore,” “It’s a shame that we have to go to the graveyard and bury them. And we have tears, and we shouldn’t have tears.” Zianna Oliphant, a young girl from Charlotte, NC spoke at a city council to bring awareness to the injustices black children are facing due to state-sanctioned violence against black bodies. Zianna is seven years old, and is already well aware of the inequalities she, and her friends, will face. When I see young black girls like Zianna, I feel a… Read more »
Pregnant Workers Fairness Act Can Improve the Workforce
We know far too well that discrimination comes in many shapes and forms, and too often it happens to pregnant people in the workforce. All over the country, people are being denied jobs because they are expecting or losing their jobs while pregnant because of a lack of accommodations. Earlier this week the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act got its first briefing on the Hill; this is huge. The legislation would help curb the discrimination against pregnant employees in the workforce. People who are pregnant sometimes lose their jobs because their employers are not willing to make the necessary accommodations for them. Companies are treating pregnant people as disposable, and this bill is a much needed step to ending this common and unfair practice. There are several parts of the bill that… Read more »
I Didn’t Love My Newborn
I didn’t love my newborn. I had loved him before he was born. Through the pregnancy complications, the month of bed rest, I had loved him. Feeling him kick, seeing my huge stomach sway with his movements whenever my husband spoke. Knowing he was there brought me comfort when I was afraid. I even loved him when he had a foot wedged in my rib, as he often did. But here he was, my baby, finally in my arms, and I didn’t love him. “This is not how I’m supposed to feel.” Nothing about my son’s entrance to the world happened the way I’d hoped. I’d planned for an unmedicated labor, complete with yoga balls and a jacuzzi tub. What I got, thanks to a terrible case of pre-eclampsia, was… Read more »
