Bad A** Moms Head To Capital Hill To Talk Foreign Aid
Mothers are culturally noted for getting the job done. Whether it be a changed diaper, a conference call in the car ride to a kid’s play, or simply pulling together a birthday with minimal disasters, mothers are known to be efficient and communicative in whatever they do. The influence mothers have on not just their families, but also communities has been noted in their frequent use of social media and active presence on the web in general. So when the organization ONE was looking for an undeniable presence to take to Capital Hill and stare down politicians, they chose mothers.
ONE, an grassroots organization dedicated to fighting poverty and famine, took eight mothers from different parenting websites to Kenya to experience the maternal struggles for women trying to provide for their families in abject poverty. In July of 2011, these mommies blogged every day about their experiences with the children in these impoverished areas, tweeting their emotional responses as women with children of their own.
Contrary to common public assumption, the United States spends less than 1% of its annual budget on foreign aid which still manages to dramatically improve the lives of women and children in some the neediest parts of the world. Yet, there are still assaults on the foreign aid budget all the time that threaten the amount of money that goes oversees.
After witnessing the improved quality of life of these mother and children from using so little of the country’s funds, these mothers headed to Washington D.C. to attend a round table with Dr. Jill Biden, USAID Administrator Raj Shah, and National Security Council Senior Director Gayle Smith. The ladies recounted their experience through the lens of motherhood, asking those in Washington to keep their experiences in mind when voting on the 2012 budget next week. The mothers also met with Nancy Pelosi who reportedly very much appreciated the voice of mothers in applying political pressure on such an important issue.
“These women have such powerful voices,” said Ginny Wolfe, the communications director at ONE. “Their firsthand experience really gives life to women on the other side of the world.”
Leave it to mothers to get the issues heard loud and clear.
