Let’s Get Serious
Childcare is too important to be concerned with profit
I am very proudly the father of a school-aged child, and am dating a woman who also has a kid in that age range. For much of the past decade, childcare has been a personal concern of mine — along with a professional one.
My ex-wife, my girlfriend, and I all primarily work (or worked) jobs that usually fall into the category of “essential”. We’re among those people who are expected to be at work no matter what else is going on in the world. In fact, my profession requires me to be at work when things aren’t going so well.
What a lot of people don’t always recognize is that this means we have to make arrangements to ensure our children are well looked after in the event of the unexpected. If I get called in at 3am, I can’t just abandon the kids.
What many more people don’t recognize is that traditional childcare doesn’t work so well for those of us who are “essential”.
In fact, most daycares are openly and transparently harmful to essential workers — who are primarily female and non-white.
I should be clear first of all that I am a white male — I’m not nearly as deeply affected as many of my co-workers. But, as a white male I have an unearned privilege and it is my responsibility to use my voice to…
