Women’s History Month is usually observed by highlighting women who have made significant contributions in fields historically dominated by men: science, politics, sports, arts and literature, etc. From calculating the landing on the Moon (Christine Darden) to winning the Nobel Prize in literature (Toni Morrison), the few who overcame gender stigma made profound marks in history. Spotlighting such women is meant to inspire others and also to promote gender equity – providing opportunities for women to thrive outside of the household. While gender equity is an important endeavor, I worry that we emphasize great achievement and still don’t value the role of women in society and culture in general.
Spotlighting such women
is meant to inspire others
and also to promote gender equity
Women have birthed, nurtured and raised humanity. Why don’t we value the work that’s been traditionally designated to them: raising and teaching children, nourishing and cooking, caring for the elders or managing the home? No technological advancement or political achievement is possible without the foundation of domestic work. I bet all the notable figures in history had someone at home to take care of life’s necessities. They were probably women and influenced those historical achievements. For every Albert Einstein, there was a Mileva Marić; for every Martin Luther King Jr there was a Coretta Scott. No great feat was ever done alone, but we forget that. Our collective progress would be nothing, and would be for nothing, if it were not for our homes and the domestic labor of someone caring for them.
No technological advancement
or political achievement is possible
without the foundation of domestic work.
Take childcare for instance. Once upon a time, the responsibility of raising children fell on both men and women and it was considered important work. Some Afrikan societies consider the raising and educating children the greatest honor. Kindezi is an African art of caring for and protecting the child and the environment. The art of Kindezi demonstrates that the child and the adult raise each other. Many Indigenous cultures in the Americas educate their youth through a Learning by Observing and Pitching In approach which is a collaborative effort among the entire community. Children under this system learn to be competent, cooperative and responsible members of their community. Childhood is such a short time in our lives yet leaves a lasting impact not just on the individual, but on society as a whole. Why can’t our westernized civilizations make it a priority?
Many Indigenous cultures in the Americas
educate their youth through a
Learning by Observing and Pitching In
The industrialized economy shifted our focus to making money. The job became central to family life such that many babies as young as six weeks have to go to a daycare because their parent(s) have to go back to work. From that point on, parents and children live separate lives. The child moves through an educational system that doesn’t provide resources for their educators and neglects the multi-dimensionality of the child. The parent is a slave to their wages as a result of this educational system. We are lost in the crowd for the sake of progress. The irony of this cycle is that while we are separated from our family, we are told that if we do well on our education, we can potentially be someone of significance. When all along, we are already significant to the people closest to us. I think highlighting great achievements further reinforce this irony. It sends the message that our value is in what we do and not who we are. If we can understand that raising children well is central to the health of our society, then maybe we can go back to collaborative efforts in raising children or perhaps honoring (and more compensation for) those who do it for a living.
Industrialized lifestyle means we have no time to raise our children or to cook our own food. The process of getting food on the table is labor intensive. You have to go shopping for ingredients, prepare, cook, serve and then clean up. For as long as we can remember, it’s been the woman’s job to do it all. Even when they entered the workforce, the responsibility of feeding the family rested on her. In our haste to pursue more lucrative occupations, we outsourced homelife to convenient methods like take-out or instant meals. But these solutions have a cost. Processed food can cause a litany of health risks. Take out and even healthy meal-prep kits rely on disposables and packaging that contribute to the 139.6 million tons of garbage a year in the United States.
Industrialized lifestyle means
we have no time to raise our children
or to cook our own food.
For the health of ourselves and for the environment, let’s start feeding ourselves properly. Let’s mindfully source our food, prepare and cook together, and breathe that moment of connection at mealtime before we are swept away, once again, by the speed of life. There is more meaning to life with this kind of caring and we can start by restoring Home-Economics in the school curriculum. It might sound crazy, but can we make it as important as math and sciences? The joy and meaning of making something homemade is immeasurable, but we can see the detrimental effects when we go for convenient methods.
Women have been around for as long as humans have existed; surviving and co-laboring right along their male counterparts. What happened? When did we value men’s contribution over women’s? How did women become the underdogs? The billions of women who were denied opportunities despite their abilities and talent is a loss to modern advancement. Men denied the dignity to raise children or attend to domestic life robs them of their own personal lives. Perhaps another way to celebrate women’s history month is to slow down. Cook all your meals, stay home with the kids, clean your house with pride. You might find a sense of wholesome liberation from doing it yourself.
Perhaps another way to
celebrate women’s history month
is to slow down.
To put economic contributions above any other, places women below men. If we dignify domestic life, maybe we won’t feel pressured to achieve or even participate in the economic market. We’ve been so focused on our jobs or even our ambitions that we neglect the daily, necessary aspects of our lives. We either rush through it, or pay someone else to do it. Equity isn’t just about bringing women to the job market, it should also regard domestic work with high esteem so anyone, regardless of gender, can feel proud to do it. Women’s work is the path out of this global environmental and economic crisis. Sure, it’s inspiring to learn of folks who made grand achievements, but there is great virtue in living a quiet life in service to the people, to families, to communities and to the planet.
Women’s work is the path
out of this global environmental
and economic crisis.
Written by Mia Velez, SF, CA 2023
