If you have ever wondered why motherhood in the US is so difficult, you don’t want to miss this conversation with Caitlyn Collins, Assistant Professor of Sociology a Washington University and author of Making Motherhood Work: How Women Manage Careers and Caregiving. In her book, Caitlyn dives into the ways public policy shapes the lives of mothers in the USA, Germany, Italy and Sweden. By examining the different policies in each country, and through detailed interviews with 135 women, the book shows how public policy decisions deeply influence culture and drastically shapes the lives of parents.

This conversation is likely to leave you shocked, and, hopefully inspired by the possibility to reimagine options for supporting mothers and children with benefits such as paid parental leave and universal affordable, high quality childcare. As Caitlyn says, instead of blaming themselves, mothers in the US should consider that the current system just isn’t working.

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