A Peaceful Revolution

This piece was co-authored by Lily Ledbetter and Joan Blades.

I can't believe I need to write this blog. The 1964 Civil Rights Act made equal pay for equal work the law of the land. For almost 50 years Americans have had the justice system to turn to when they...

Last week, to mark the 5th anniversary of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, I spent an afternoon reading the moving stories of the now 4,000 dead and over 30,000 wounded servicemembers. As I read, another powerful story emerged--that of the mothers, spouses, and families of soldiers, and the shameful...

The image of Silda Wall Spitzer--corporate lawyer, mother of three, and wife of now former New York Governor--standing silently next to her husband as he publicly confessed is now etched in our national consciousness. That image, the picture of the pale, silently suffering wife (but definitely smart, she has a...

It may be one of the deepest, yet least-known, economic divides in our society. So often, doctors, teachers, union members and others with benefit packages are amazed to learn that millions of workers in this country are without paid sick days. I hear gasps when I talk about it to...

When it comes to open, flexible work options such as those MomsRising.org is working to achieve, the term "family-friendly" could more accurately be labeled "human-friendly." People in every conceivable living arrangement desire work that takes into account their individuality, their dreams, and their responsibilities outside of their jobs. Unfortunately,...

A stay-at-home mother doesn't get a paycheck, so she might wonder if the Fair Pay Restoration Act impacts her life. At first glance it appears not, but a closer look shows that it does affect her and that all moms -- regardless of their stay-at-home or working mother status --...

Surfing for the Super Bowl scores the other night, I came across a CNN poll asking people if they were more excited about the Super Bowl or Super Tuesday. To my surprise, significantly more were excited about Super Tuesday. Change is in the air; people young and old have caught...

Trust: It's a word we hear a lot in presidential election years. Indeed, it's not surprising that many people deem presidential elections to be campaigns of trust, as the voters are asked whom they trust to make pivotal domestic and international decisions; to develop, support and maintain policies that...

When our granddaughters read their history books, this week may well be one that is marked as the beginning of the end of the pay discrimination many of their foremothers endured.

On Thursday of this week, the Senate holds its first hearing on the Fair Pay Restoration Act (S.1843)...

"There ought to be a law!" How many times have we heard or said those words ourselves when encountering some unfairness? Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the same thing last year in the dissenting opinion in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire when she urged Congress to pass a law...

In the waning days of the Bush administration, pro-business forces want to lock in rules in several policy areas -- health, safety, labor -- in case a Democrat moves into the White House following the '08 election. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is among those rules they want...

Written by Mary Olivella, Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, and Joan Blades

Every once in a while a word or phrase is introduced into the lexicon that sheds light on a widespread practice which hasn't yet entered the national consciousness. These phrases take hold because we need them.

A few days ago,...

On the first day of Christmas,
my true love gave me:
A lovely, bouncing baby.

On the second day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me:
Paid parental leave,
And a lovely, bouncing baby.

Although I'm not a fan of trickle-down economic theory, I've always believed that when women advance into positions of authority in the work world -- pay and other conditions for women at those same companies (and in those job sectors) should eventually improve. Of course what we should strive for...

If the true gauge of any government is how it cares for the poor, the Southern states used to be pretty good. From Texas to Georgia and up to Kentucky, these states were part of the Democratic coalition that brought us the minimum wage along with health coverage and income...

It wasn't long ago that presidential candidates wooed the votes of "soccer moms" and "waitress moms." With the 2008 election looming and presidential debates already underway, it's fair to ask, "What's on the minds of moms?''

I've interviewed mothers around the country for the past several years: old and new...

I flew into San Diego some time ago, and from the air you could see it wasn't a good location for a big city. There area is very dry, so much of the water supply comes from the Colorado River. The river is hundreds of miles away, and drying...

For Halloween last week MomsRising.org asked its members, "What's really scary for American moms?" Aside from scary costumes, increased dental bills, and dark corners on moonless Halloween nights, we wanted to hear about the real deal -- about the scares that last even after the costumes are discarded and...

"You've got to be kidding me!" was the first thing we thought after hearing on Tuesday that Nancy Nord, the head of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), doesn't support legislation to greatly increase resources for her agency to stop toxic products from reaching children. Right now there is only...