Telling Women's Lives

Jorge Fournier | Unfinished Business Reader Response

It was great to continue reading Anne-Marie Slaughter. I really enjoyed her first article in the Atlantic and see this text as a continuation of this article with more research. I previously did not believe what Slaughter proposes that parenting and caregiving should be as respected as another profession. She did not see this idea accepted when she decided to leave the U.S. State Department to return to her family. I loved how she went into this personal experience in the text. Now, after taking at least ¾ of this class, I really believe that women and men should both make it a priority to develop an equal and flexible schedule to care for their children. My mom was running her own business when I was growing up and I remember the long days in the shopping mall while my mom sold clothes in her store to people walking by—I hated it. I was so bored and growing up I kind of wanted that my mother stopped working so that she could focus on taking care of my sister, brother, and I. Eventually, the business closed and she resorted to taking care of us before starting to work with nonprofits when we were both in high school. Now, my little brother is 9 years old and I am beginning to push my dad to get more involved in my little brother’s school work, activities, and parent responsibilities. This will avoid the “halo dad syndrome” that Slaughter also explains in the text. Maybe I can even mention to my mom that she needs to “let it go.”