The Motherhood Manifesto    

Chapter One:   Motherhood in America

by Joan Blades and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner

            Profoundly influenced by feminism and women's duel role as mother and worker, Joan Blades and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner's The Motherhood Manifesto explores the struggles of working mothers and the societal battles women face on a daily basis.   Blades and Rowe-Finkbeiner argue that women and mothers are in the workplace to stay yet public policy and the workplace structures have yet to catch up and provide women the assistance they need.   The authors use biographical information and personal interviews to form the thesis of the text, that the heart of the issue for working women is a need for change in society's attitudes toward women as well as in public policy.   To prove the thesis, Blades and Rowe-Finkbeiner highlight the devaluation of women's jobs (Why must the most important job in the world, raising the next generation, still be the least valued?) as well as "Mommy Wars" (the current argument among women of whether it is better for mothers to continue to work in the workplace or to stay at home with their children).   These examples prove the continual struggles that working mothers face.   This article is a sufficient resource, as it not only describes the problems in depth yet also explains possible solutions, or what the authors refer to as "Manifesto Points", to solve the issues.    - B.DeN.

This author presents the position of the single mother who does it all.   The supermom and double-shift moms are presented. The author makes a profound statement by saying "The most important job in the world is the least valued."   The author proves using statistics that majority of American women are working moms.   The author provides the reader with real life scenarios of the everyday live of a single working mother.   It is important to read about the single, working mother and to consider and respect her work as a full-time job. -B.D.