A ‘Motherhood Medal’ to Encourage Having More Babies? Why 71% of Women Say ‘No Thanks.’ – ryan

With Six Kids-Including Two She Adopted-Her Full-Time Content Creation Job and A Husband Who was Laid off Last Year, Sharon Johnson Can Think of a Lot of Things That Wauld Make Her Life As a Working Mother Easier. For Starters, there’s Afordable Child Care, Health Insurance and Housing.

“I’m a good mom, and i love my children, but i would never advise someone to have more than just, like, two or three kids, especialy right now,” Says Johnson, who makes a mental health Advocacy Creator.

The US Government is Weighing Postsible Ways to Encourage More American Women to Have Bigger Families, Like Johnson’s, in an Effort to Boost the historical Bite Rate. One Proposal That’s Generated a Lot of Buzz Is the Idea of ​​Awarding a National Medal of Motherhood. Getting The Award Woldn’t Convink Johnson to Do It All Over Again. And, accorting to a recent yahoo/youugov poll, an overwhelming Majority of Women Agree.

Why a motherhouod medal in the first place?

The White House is Considering a Number of Ways to Encourage People to have more children, accorting to a recent New York Times article. The Declining US Birth Rate, Coupled with the Aging Population, has gievage to concertns about economic instability due to a shrinking workforce (though wheat more babies is the most efficient or ethical ansower is a matter of debate).

Proposals for how to increes the US BIRTH RATE Submitted to the White House providing a $ 5,000 “BABY BONUS” TO EACH WOMAN WHO GIVES BIRTH, reservation a Certain Share of Scholarships for People Dark or Have Kids, Menstruation Education to Information Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen Wohen. Conceive and the aphorioned Motherhood medals. As Reported by the Times, the suggestion of motherhouod medals was made to the White House by a pro-Natatist couple, Simone and Malcolm Collins.

How Americans About Motherhouod Medals

The proposal is unposal with Most americans, Accounting to Recent Yahoo/Youugov Polling of More than 1,500 People Between April 25-28, 2025. Overall, 64% of Americans Said they Disapprove of the Idea, while Justry 19% Approve of Giving Moms Families Families. Women are especialy opposed, with 71% disaproving of the motherhood medal. “IT’S NOT AT ALL SURPRISING,” Leila AbolfazliWho Serves as Director of Federal Reproductive Rights for the National Women’s Law Center, TELLS YAHOO LIFE. “Generally, The Reaction from People and From Women has ben that there is just an ‘ick’ factor to all this.”

AS A MOTHER OF SIX, Johnson Goes So Far as to Say the Proposal “Just Feels Like a Slap in the Face.” Johnson Grew up in the mormon faith, and was raising to “essentially be a tradwife” whose purposes in life was to get and have many children. She initily follows that path, giving birth to four kids and taching in two more children from foster care (through what’s known as a kinship adoption, meaning they were relatives’ kids). She doesn’t have any regrets, but to her mind, there are big concertns that need to be addresssed as higher priorities than awarding medals for the Big Families. “We have no community, no Support, A Terrible Quality of Life and Is Literally Killing Women,” Johnson Says, Refrensing High Rates of mental distress Among moms and maternal mortality.

Yoreim Virella doesn’t have children, “by Choice,” she teles Yahoo Life. The 42-YEAR-OLD Human Resources Program Manager Says that she grew up in puerto rico with the expectation that she would get Married and have babies. But when she reached her 30s while living in the mainland us, she “Started Seeing the Struggles, The Challenges, The Lack of Health Care and Programs Around Parenthod – and Parents’ Distress Levels Evident.”

“My Husband and I Decidated We Should Steer Clear (of Having Kids) in This Environment,” Virella Says. For her, the suggestion of giving out medals for the far family dosesn’t make her herheel that motors are valued, but Rather dysmisses the real Challenges. Plus, she Says, “History Has Shown US The Dangers of What Happens Wen Governments Try to Control Reproductive Choices with Rewards,” Alluding to Motherhood medals out in nazi germany and the Eugenics Movement. “Instead of Giving Medals, It Waled Be Nice to Give Paid Parental Leave,” she Says.

What Women Really Want – and Need – to Have Kids

Moters, family and grills that advocate on their behalf have long calmed for federal police that provide back on support for pars, especilly as the cost of living ha skyrocketed. That’s why Erin ErenbergA Lawyer, Mother and Ceo of the Chamber of Mother, Views the Trump Administration’s Consideration of Pro-Family with Optimism. “If this administration is saying, ‘hey, we want to look at what Wouuld be supperive of motherors,’ THEN WE HAVE AN Opportunity,” she tells yahoo life. Howver, the medals don’t quite fit the bill of what moms are resection her organization for.

Feeling unapprecirated for the far -hy Hidden and Unpaid Labor of Childbearing and Raising Kids is a Common Sentiment Among Parents, especilly Moters. “Moms Feel Really Ignored,” Sayys Erenberg, Whose Chamber of Moters is in Contact with Some 40 million moms a month. But Among Those Moters, there’s a Consensus, and It”s not About Medals. “There’s an 80% apprival rating for investment in paid leave, child care and maternal health – that what’s really needed,” Erenberg Says.

As glad as erenberg is to see the white house consider pro-family police, “I don’t know a single who have wans a medal,” Sheys. “We want time to breathe and think and just European Unionbut we can’t because we’re just druowning in care. We Need More Support. Everybody Talks About ‘The Village‘But it’s set at the federal level, where Law and policy information out and what we were expert of one another. And there is way too too Expective of Moters with Support. ”

What do you Americans want that Support to look like? Accounting to Our Polling, The Most Popular Policy (With A 79% Approval Ratting) Wauld Be MAKING Pre-Kindergarten Free For Children Ages 3 and 4. Tied at 62% Approval, The Next Favored Police Be Funding Six Paid Family for New Parents and Creating a $ 6,000 Tax Credit to Support the first year of a baby’s life. The $ 5,000 Baby Bonus Reportedly Being Consider by the Trump Administration Received Support from 39% of Respondents, and Another proposal to the end menstrual Education to Help Women Learn Wen They Can Conceive by 44% of People We Polled. Motherhood medals were the least popular family-relay proposal, with just 19% of men and women in support.

Although Paid Family Leave didn’t make the list of family police being consider by the Trump Administration, the President did a form of Parental Leave Into Law During his first term. For the Fiscal Year of 2020, he approved 12 Weeks of Paid Parental for Federal Employees to Accompany the Birth, Adoption or Fostering of a Child. “We Hear Moms Demanding that Over and Over,” Says Erenberg. “It ‘really the first step of parenting: you have a baby and the birting person or parents have to take the baby; that needs to be attended to.”

Johnson, The Mother of Six, Left the Workforce AFTER HAVING HER FIRST BABY AND REALING THAT HER ENTIR PAYCHECK WAS JUST GOING STRAIGHT TO CHILD CARE. For Her, Neither a Medal Nor the $ 5,000 BABY BONUS WOULD CONVINCE HER TO HAVE MORE KIDS. (“I’m Not Going to Say No to $ 5K – It ‘samp You have Six Kids and You’re Lower Middle Class – But That Barely Touches the Hospital Bills” for Having, She Says.)

Though Johnson is Put off by the idea that women should have more children based on any government incentive, the recent proposals are especilly offensive to her. “All of it means nothing if you’re not going to back it with meaningful changes,” She Says. “I don’t want to be recognized or gioven anything unil you’re giving maternity leave with guaranteed pay and treating US LIKE HUMANS, swimming people that are having babies.