Pass the Damn Bill: An Ode to Paid Medical & Family Leave for All

Friday nite & I should be taking the nite to relax.

Instead, I weep. My heart broken. My soul crushed.

12 weeks negotiated down to 4 and negotiations continue,

No confidence here that it will pass.

Politicians wheeling and dealing the health & wellness of the American people -

people who are the backbone of this nation and who make it what it is.

The only industrialized country in the world without paid family leave.

What does that say about us…

About our country's values?

It says that my husband’s job is more important than him caring for a sick family member…

That my son’s work is more important than his newborn child...

That a woman’s body - after growing a life and laboring thru birth - is ready to go back to work the next day.

That a child, a son, a daughter, a mother, a father don’t deserve the loving care of their family in their time of need.

It perpetuates the cycle.

The cycle that says women are caregivers and men are not.

The cycle that says men are bread winners and women are not.

The cycle that has women sacrificing

their health,

their well being,

their careers.

The cycle that has men sacrificing

their health,

their well being,

their families.

Tonight I am crushed and devastated.

Tonite I wonder…

Should I study up on that 1950’s Good Housekeeping article…

The one about how to be a good housewife?

Because, really, that’s the message I’m getting.

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Support Paid Family & Medical Leave for everyone.

Send a quick email to your representative asking them to include paid leave in the budget package. You can find a pre-written message at Paid Leave for the US (PL+US).