When Liuba Grechen Shirley ran for Congress in 2018, she realized how hard it was to run a campaign while parenting young kids at the same time. She didn’t just sit back and accept that was how the world works — she vowed to change it.
Liuba became the first federal candidate to be allowed to use campaign funds for childcare, but she didn’t stop there. She went on to found Vote Mama, an organization dedicated to helping moms build political power.
It’s not just a matter of fairness. It’s how we get good policy. When only rich white men are in power, they make laws that benefit other rich white men. It doesn’t even have to be malicious — it’s the nature of legislating based on your own experience. But with more moms in office, we can get better policies that support families, like paid parental leave and better healthcare for everyone.
On today’s podcast episode, Liuba, Katie, and LaFonda also chat about how we can talk to our kids about the horrible things we’ve been seeing in the news... and how we can deal with all that bad news ourselves too. As Liuba said back in January, “Meaningful work is the only thing getting me through this shit.”
Honestly, same.
The good thing is that saving the world doesn’t have to feel like hard work. With the right people by your side (whether they’re a mom or not), advocating for a better country can actually be fun! You can learn more about Vote Mama and their “Moms Night Out” program at https://votemamafoundation.org/.