On September 24, the Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Network (BWLN) hosted a half-day virtual symposium examining measures the US government could take to compensate women for labor that often goes unpaid, such as care for children and aging parents. In particular, the symposium looked at the “Marshall Plan for Moms,” a resolution introduced to Congress that uses the 1948 Marshall Plan—a US federal foreign aid initiative created to stimulate post-World War II economic recovery—as a blueprint for creating infrastructure to support women, and particularly mothers, as part of economic recovery efforts in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symposium included prerecorded remarks by US Senator Amy Klobuchar, who introduced the Marshall Plan for Moms to the US House of Representatives, as well as panels on topics such as the care economy and creating equitable care infrastructure.
“The Marshall Plan for Moms, and indeed for all parents, is necessary for our impending recovery,” said BWLN Faculty Director and Fred I. and Grace Stokes Professor of Law Melissa Murray in her opening remarks. She added: “Our planning must include care work as part of the infrastructure that is necessary to fuel our country's economic engine.”
Posted October 20, 2021.