From Peter’s Desk: On being Family-Friendly

While we bask in the glory of ballot access in Mississippi, I wanted to share some thoughts about a book I’ve just finished, Tim Carney’s Family Unfriendly. I’ll start by saying I certainly don’t endorse everything in the book (I am pro-car seat!)–but it is a helpful read for solidarity-minded folks and those who want to reshape their definition of what a thriving society looks like. He speaks to a lot of attempts by policymakers to address the growing “birth bust” and decline in fertility in the West, judging each one by their success rates, from cash payments at the birth of a new child to extended family leave and so on. I appreciated his research but felt by the end of the book that we should be implementing many of these policies not simply because they do (or in many cases, do not) raise birth rates but because they are the right thing to do for families.

I thought a lot about the section detailing how government agencies judge the success of these policies by women’s rate of return to the workforce postpartum, while that might not necessarily be the measure of success for each mother (or father). We tend to value productivity over people’s expressed wishes, in this case for greater flexibility in work places and for more time with their children. We’re still living in a world with a 9 to 5 work day and an 8 to 3 school day and telling people to figure it out for themselves. Ideally, however, we would frown upon staying late to work and missing dinner with your family. I appreciated the re-framing of “success” and “thriving” to focus less on GDP and more on the health of the family unit.

It’s not too late to spread the word to family and friends that they have the chance to vote for a truly pro-family ticket that promotes a vision in which respect for the family, as the fundamental unit of society, shapes policy. If you are looking for specific information about yard sign distribution or write-in requirements in your state, please reach out to us!