[Wamvan] Fwd: Valuing Our Mothers

Thu May 10 15:32:01 PDT 2012

I haven't seen much in the mainstream media but I liked this article at
Colorlines that links to a series of e-cards you can send that represent
"mamas on the margins" -
http://colorlines.com/archives/2012/05/mamas_day_e-cards.html

Here's an excerpt:

A group of activists and mothers in Oakland, Calif. have started an annual
Mother’s Day tradition that would probably put Hallmark to shame. Fed up
with the mainstream image of mothers as domestic, middle class, and white,
they’ve made a real effort over the past two years to celebrate who they
call “mamas on the margins”: all those single, queer, immigrant, and young
mothers whose stories are often glossed over by corporate card makers.
[image: Activist-Mama2.png] <http://mamasday.org/>

“I can’t find a Mother’s Day card that looks at our identities in a way
that is sentimental for me and my mom,” says Shanelle Matthews,
communications coordinator at Forward Together <http://forwardtogether.org/>,
an Oakland-based organization that’s leading the e-Card drive through its
Strong Families initiative. Matthews grew up as one of three kids in a
single-parent black household, and wants to celebrate her mother’s hard
work. “This campaign is personally close to be because I can finally say
something to my mom on Mother’s Day that’s actually of cultural relevance
and value.”

On Thu, May 10, 2012 at 3:27 PM, Natalie Hill <nhill10 at gmail.com> wrote:

> A great reminder of the very political roots of Mother's Day - a day of
> action towards furthering mother's rights, not a day of consumption and
> materialism.
>
> Many of the media I've seen this week has done the typical stuff - gift
> lists and 'what do buy' your mom type columns. Has anyone read anything
> else?
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Miss Representation <Miss_Representation at mail.vresp.com>
> Date: Thu, May 10, 2012 at 3:04 PM
> Subject: Valuing Our Mothers
> To: nhill10 at gmail.com
>
>
>
> <http://cts.vresp.com/fbl?d81d2dc9f2/1eb99f04bd/http%3A%2F%2Fhosted-p0.vresp.com%2F816967%2Fd81d2dc9f2%2FARCHIVE%23like>
> <http://cts.vresp.com/ts?d81d2dc9f2/1eb99f04bd/http%3A%2F%2Fapi.addthis.com%2Foexchange%2F0.8%2Fforward%2Ftwitter%2Foffer%3Ftemplate%3D%257B%257Btitle%257D%257D%2B%257B%257Burl%257D%257D%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fhosted-p0.vresp.com%252F816967%252Fd81d2dc9f2%252FARCHIVE%26shortener%3Dbitly%26title%3DValuing%2BOur%2BMothers>
> <http://cts.vresp.com/ls?d81d2dc9f2/1eb99f04bd/http%3A%2F%2Fapi.addthis.com%2Foexchange%2F0.8%2Fforward%2Flinkedin%2Foffer%3Ftemplate%3D%257B%257Btitle%257D%257D%2B%257B%257Burl%257D%257D%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fhosted-p0.vresp.com%252F816967%252Fd81d2dc9f2%252FARCHIVE%26shortener%3Dbitly%26title%3DValuing%2BOur%2BMothers>
> **
>
> [image: actionalert]<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MissRepresentation/d81d2dc9f2/1eb99f04bd/cbd3878f9e>
>
> Dear Natalie,
>
> This Sunday, in the U.S. and elsewhere, we will take time out of our busy
> schedules to stop and honor some of the most important people in our lives:
> our mothers. While this is certainly a moment for celebration, it's also a
> chance for reflection. How are we treating our mothers the other 364 days
> of the year?
>
> It turns out, we could be doing a lot better. Studies show that if we paid
> stay-at-home mothers an appropriate salary, they'd make $117,000 a year.
> And the political debates of the last year have only magnified how
> undervalued and marginalized our mothers really are.
>
> Recently I wrote a piece<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MissRepresentation/d81d2dc9f2/1eb99f04bd/0c578b8b04>for the International Museum of Women
> * *called "A Revolution, Stalled," in which I addressed how we are
> especially failing our mothers in the workforce:
>
>  "The lack of proper respect and assistance for working mothers is a major
> factor in the lack of equality for women across the board. The pay gap
> still exists...Furthermore, even though studies have shown that working
> mothers pose fewer burdens for employers than their co-workers, the
> stereotype persists, and women with children make 7 to 14 percent less than
> their childless female peers."
>
>  This Mother's Day we're asking how we can better value all mothers. How
> can partners and extended family members help out with childcare, elderly
> care, and household management so that the responsibility doesn't fall 100
> percent on the shoulders of women? How does your company, your spouse's
> company or your parents' company(ies) treat working mothers? Find the
> contact information of their CEO and simply *forward them this email*. Send
> them the Gender Equity Principles<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MissRepresentation/d81d2dc9f2/1eb99f04bd/44e8bf75bc> for
> further directions on how to make sure women everywhere are being treated
> fairly.
>
> We all have a responsibility to mothers, and one way we can support those
> in our community is by raising awareness around these issues. Regardless of
> whether she works at home or in an office, the greatest gift we can give
> our mothers is a transformation of our culture's unfair expectations of
> women as primary caregivers and household managers. By raising
> consciousness around the issues faced by moms, we are closing the gender
> gap and expanding the opportunities available to all women and girls.
>
> Happy Mother's Day!
>
> Onwards,
>
> Jennifer Siebel Newsom, CEO and Founder of MissRepresentation.org
>
>
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>
>
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-- 
--------------------
Jarrah Hodge
@jarrahpenguin
http://gender-focus.com
604-790-0487
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