Last weekend I was in New York at DOC NYC, the largest documentary film festival in the United States! I attended the premiere of the documentary film, To Kid Or Not To Kid by filmmaker Maxine Trump. The film follows Maxine’s personal journey of moving through her decision to live childfree. Continue reading “The Premiere of the Documentary Film, To Kid Or Not To Kid, by Maxine Trump”
Tag: pronatalism
Procreative Ethics, Pronatalism, and the Childfree Choice
I sure love that we are seeing more pieces like this one: “Would you give up having children to save the planet? Meet the couples who have.” While all people don’t “give up” having children, I do like that it discusses the larger picture of bringing another biological child into the world. Continue reading “Procreative Ethics, Pronatalism, and the Childfree Choice”
Taking a Deeper Look at “Baby Fever”
Seeing the piece, “Baby Fever in Your 20s? Here’s What Experts Say That Means” sparked my interest in looking into research on what’s referred to as “baby fever.” Let’s take a look. Continue reading “Taking a Deeper Look at “Baby Fever””
On RBG, and a Final Frontier for Equal Treatment
The new documentary on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, RBG, is a must-see. As The Economist piece, “How Ruth Bader Ginsburg became a trailblazer for gender equality” summarizes, this film gives us a real feel for how “Ms. Ginsburg built America’s gender equality standards brick by brick,” and “the quieter parts of this remarkable justice’s life.” Continue reading “On RBG, and a Final Frontier for Equal Treatment”
The Childfree, Childless & Guilt
Reading “Let’s hear it for the single, childless women: We get tired too,” by Mika Sarmiento got me thinking, especially when she writes about a “specific kind of guilt that comes with talking about sleepless nights and long days with said great wives and mothers.” What’s behind this particular kind of guilt? Continue reading “The Childfree, Childless & Guilt”
Advice on the “To Baby or Not to Baby” Question
A recent “Ask Polly” on The Cut shocked me. A woman writes in with the question, “Should I have a baby?” and even though Polly assures readers the “column is not a parody,” I admit I read the response more than once to be sure her advice actually seemed serious. Continue reading “Advice on the “To Baby or Not to Baby” Question”
On the Myth of Maternal Instinct
In my 2017 childfree trending piece, I discuss how in recent years we’ve been seeing more talk about pronatalism. Some articles use the word directly, some not. An excellent feature article that appeared on money.good.is magazine last fall by Mike Mariani gives us a great example of the latter. Continue reading “On the Myth of Maternal Instinct”
Q&A With Research Scholar, Amrita Nandy on her Book, Motherhood and Choice
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing New Delhi research scholar and activist, Amrita Nandy, about her new book, Motherhood and Choice: Uncommon Mothers, Childfree Women. Check it out: Continue reading “Q&A With Research Scholar, Amrita Nandy on her Book, Motherhood and Choice”
Riffing on Childfree Lilli Blackmore’s, “Why Having Kids Is Not A Retirement Plan”
I have been enjoying Lilli Blackmore’s posts on her site, the American Spinster. Her most recent post, “Why Having Kids Is Not a Retirement Plan” inspires me to riff on this important topic. Please indulge me. Continue reading “Riffing on Childfree Lilli Blackmore’s, “Why Having Kids Is Not A Retirement Plan””
Not Having Kids: From Moral Outrage toward Moral Duty
One particular phrase relating to a study that came out last spring continues to pop up online: moral outrage. The study, “Parenthood as a Moral Imperative? Moral Outrage and the Stigmatization of Voluntarily Childfree Women and Men” has a finding that not having children by choice “inspires moral outrage in others.” While the study’s author Leslie Ashburn-Nardo acknowledges “mean levels of moral outrage were small overall” and it can be argued that the media have overblown this finding, it’s worth asking why people can feel morally outraged by the childfree. Here are two big reasons why. Continue reading “Not Having Kids: From Moral Outrage toward Moral Duty”
