Caregivers Deserve More Than Medals: A Real Mother’s Day Agenda
This Mother’s Day, instead of asking how to grow families, our government should be focused on the real crisis: how we’re failing the people already doing the work of care.
But rather than making meaningful investments in the systems caregivers rely on, the Trump Administration has recently offered a patchwork of bizarre, misguided proposals aimed at reversing the U.S.’s declining birth rates. Among them: reserving 30% of Fulbright scholarships for married parents, giving National Medals of Motherhood to women with 6 or more children, and other policies designed to push people toward marriage and parenthood.
Economists worry that a declining birth rate will shrink the labor force, harming local economies and tax structures. But the Trump Administration’s proposals aren’t simply about economics, they’re part of a broader cultural agenda, as laid out in Project 2025, to promote pro-natalist ideologies and “restore the family as the centerpiece of American life.” This is coded language for a very specific kind of family — a heterosexual, married couple with children — leaving out every other kind of family structure, including single parents, foster families, multigenerational households and more.
Criticisms of these proposals came swiftly. Chief among a myriad of concerns is that the Trump Administration is simply using the power of the office to compel people into childbearing while ignoring the concerns of parents and caregivers amid a national care crisis. A crisis which includes not only childcare, but also elder care, health care, care for people with disabilities and domestic care.
Caregiving without access, equity or resources creates extreme stress, overwhelming the time, energy and financial resources of the caregiver. In Pennsylvania, 57% of families with a child under 6 live in a childcare desert. And since most caregivers are working full time outside of the home due to financial necessity, balancing work and caregiving is incredibly challenging. It’s no surprise then that the strain of this impacts the physical and mental health of caregivers with 4 in 10 caregivers reporting that they rarely or never feel relaxed.
Plainly, the care crisis is acute. The cost of care is prohibitive, people who need it cannot access it and the caregiving burden falls disproportionately on women and other gender marginalized people, leading to poor work outcomes, significant stress and financial trauma. President Trump’s proposals to reverse the declining birth rate in the context of this crisis are meaningless and misdirected. We simply do not have the infrastructure or investment needed to adequately support those in need of care today.
Fortunately, there are proven and grounded solutions.
1. We must consider the care economy as a whole and broaden the conversation beyond simply having and caring for children. That includes care for the elderly, folks who become sick, and folks who are disabled. All economic activities that involve people require some element of care; as such, caregiving will touch each of our lives.
2. We must look at public policies and their impact on caregiving, as care work requires infrastructure investment. This means we all share responsibility for guaranteeing the care that society needs to function. More urgently, for caregivers and those needing care — which will be ALL of us, to be sure — public care funds like Medicaid must be protected.
3. We must listen to those who work in the care economy who have been sounding the alarm and telling us directly what they want/need. Better functioning care systems respond to the needs of caregivers and those cared for and promote equity amongst those who are currently struggling to work and navigate within the system.
At WOMEN’S WAY, we know the solutions are already there. That’s why we recently launched the Gender Economic Equity Program to support those within the care economy who are working to strengthen alternative care models grounded in equity and inclusion. We know it is possible to work together to build a care sector that leads to long-term social transformation for everyone, and it is imperative to remain grounded in what works.
So this Mother’s Day, in honor of caregivers everywhere, let’s reject the pageantry of distraction and double down on supporting caregivers with sound policy that actually works.
About the Author
Kelly Sheard is a Philadelphia native, Black Feminist and mother. She serves as the Chief Strategy Officer for WOMEN’S WAY, providing leadership to research, programming and strategic initiatives.
