Читать книгу Raising Able - Susan Tordella - Страница 50

Housework and raising children are legitimate work that has been marginalized, ironically at the same time women have gained equal opportunity in the paid workforce.

Time and energy are required to create a home and care for children. Someone must be willing to plan and create the continuous stream of meals, routines, medical care and activities, to manage children and/or child care.

If both parents are employed, someone must oversee the cadre of people who replace the domo-gurus, my gender neutral term for stay-at-home parents who provide an estimated $134,000 of services annually if bought in the marketplace. Running a household and raising children require so much energy that full-time domestic-gurus can’t do everything.

The women’s movement gave women new opportunities and economic independence. Women inherited a double burden. We come home to the second shift, whether or not we have children.

Multiple studies show that employed women perform a disproportionate amount of housework compared to their husbands. Sadly, we women accept it and train our sons and daughters to fulfill the same prophesy. To change the expectation that women are house servants, expect boys and girls to contribute equally inside and outside of the house, without regard to gender.

Everyone at our house did yard work and took turns mowing the lawn. Our oldest daughter, Casey despised mowing the lawn and often paid her brothers when it was her turn. I didn’t interfere because it was not my problem. The boys did dishes, cooked and cleaned.

Gender equity in housework starts at home.