#HERVotes Blog Carnival: Extend Unemployment Insurance!
Welcome to the #HERVotes Blog Carnival, this time focused on the need to extend unemployment insurance. Why? One reason is that far too many children in our nation (nearly 1 in 4) live in families who are struggling to put food on the table because of poverty. And for them, this holiday season will be [...]
Women, The Economy, and Unemployment Insurance
I am eight months pregnant. I am currently in a battle with unemployment insurance and my previous employer, WMATA (Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority) over whether or not I should be allowed unemployment benefits. Since October 24 (almost six weeks ago) I have been wrongfully let go from my position as Electrical Mechanical Helper and [...]
Navigating unemployment
I had been unable to find a job in my field since April of 2011. My family is staying afloat and we are one of the lucky ones. Wondering what my field is? I am a SOCIAL WORKER with a masters degree! I thought the world needed social workers?! I’m sure it still does, but [...]
When my husband faced unemployment
My husband lost his job in July. He is college-educated with 10 years of experience in the engineering field. He should be able to find another job. Unfortunately, now it’s the end of October and although he has had several interviews, he has been unable to find full-time work. Our family is surviving on my [...]
I Am ‘Occupying’ D.C. for My Children and Future Generations
This week I will be sitting in at Congressional members’ offices, confronting corporate lobbyists on K Street and taking other actions with organizers from Our DC and across the country to draw attention to our nation’s high unemployment and underemployment rate. I haven’t felt this energized since the civil rights movement and women’s march in [...]
Unemployment Insurance is the LEAST We Can Offer Working Families
The reason I say “working” families is because this economy is much more complicated than “working” and “unemployed.” There are many families like ours, struggling, even though we both technically have jobs. We are both in our 50s, have no retirement savings and are living paycheck to paycheck. A year ago, my husband who was [...]
Without Unemployment Insurance, My Family Would Have To Choose Which Bills to Pay
To say that the job market is “bad” in Tampa, Florida, would be an understatement. The city has an unemployment rate of almost 11%, which is slightly higher than the rest of the state and significantly higher than the rest of the country. Everything from our home foreclosure rates to divorce rates are high. It’s [...]
Good Education. Good experience. Still unemployed.
I am an RN who specializes in utilization review. I had worked for the same company since 1999. Unfortunately, as the dawn of the economic crisis broke, that company was swallowed up by another company, and then that was sold to another. After years of losing pensions, switching to lesser yielding 401k’s and many pay [...]
Holiday Fear
Usually we think of cheer, not fear, as synonymous with the holiday season. All you have to do is look around in store windows or at TV commercials and you see pretty, shiny objects holding court with cheerful jingles playing in the background. Then there’s that car commercial where the jingle is the surprise clue, [...]
3 Easy Steps to Toxic Free & Yummy Stocking Stuffers!
Edible treats make great stocking stuffers; just make sure they’re not stuffed with toxins. Follow these basic tricks to find non-toxic (and inexpensive!) alternatives: 1) Look for less packaging: Those giant, food filled holiday baskets are home to loads of plastic. And unfortunately, even for small stocking stuffers like candy canes, tis the season for [...]
Denied! Stand up for stay at home moms, dads, caregivers
Denied. That’s the response Holly McCall of Virginia received when she recently applied for a credit card. The reason? Holly is a stay-at-home mother. Effective October 1st – just as parents are stocking up on holiday gifts – credit card companies are required to consider an applicant’s individual income, rather than household income, to qualify [...]
And Now, About Those Mega-Rich Alleged Job Creators…
Any second-grader could do the math. I say the Job Creators are the 99% who clip discount coupons from the Sunday newspaper so they can get 4 cans for $1.
Carcinogens, Endocrine Disruptors & Teratogens, Oh My!
A few years ago I started to learn about the utter lack of regulation by the FDA of many of the products used by women and children. Did you know that most of the ingredients in your body lotion, shampoo, baby shampoo, deodorant, shaving cream, perfume, tooth paste and other similar items are unregulated? In [...]
Me Fall Down Too!!
Today I discovered the most amazing game I can play with my two-year-old son. It’s called “Me Fall Down Too” and here’s how it goes. My son throws himself down on the floor and says “Me fall down!” Then I throw myself down on the floor and I say “Me fall down too!” And here’s [...]
Gift Guide: Non-Toxic Beauty Gifts and DIY Tips
Beauty products make great stocking stuffers for the ladies in your life. Leave toxic chemicals out of your gifts by using these easy shopping tips or making inexpensive, non-toxic DIY versions. 1) First, do your research before you give: We know you want to avoid giving a toxic gift, but labels on cosmetics and beauty products are [...]
Struggling Moms Need Healthy Teeth: Don’t Cut Prenatal Dental Care
The U.S. economy continues to sputter and that means state legislators around the country are once again debating deep cuts in spending. Here in Washington, the latest round of budget-cutting threatens to wash away one of the state’s vital though too often overlooked programs for families: Prenatal dental care. Today, Washington covers dental care for [...]
Why I’m (Pre)Occupied with Miley Cyrus: Does Hannah Montana Still Matter?
It's been easy for people worried about the sexualization of little girls to feel unambivalently distressed about Miley Cyrus as Disney's Hannah Montana. But how should we feel about her now that she's made this great music video about Occupy protests around the world?
The Next Citizen’s Movement — Respectful Dialogue
On December 4, 2011, the Livingroom Conversations Website went live and I co-hosted a demonstration Living Room Conversation gathering with my conservative partner Amanda Kathyrn Roman. I’m still feeling the glow. I expanded my understanding of where we might find common ground across party lines around reducing the influence of big money in politics, and [...]
