Part 2 – A Year Without Sleep: The Unfortunate Truth About Gender Equity and Working Mothers In A Pandemic

This article is the second in a 3-part series on motherhood in the pandemic. The first part is available here.

In March 2020, one year ago this week, the world changed for me and for many, many mothers, all around the world. In America, in the midst of Women’s History Month, as our country became the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak, working mothers had to suddenly shift their professional responsibilities in order to accommodate their children’s minute-by-minute needs as well.

Some mothers lost their jobs or voluntarily left them behind, losing not only their incomes but, in too many cases, their health insurance plans as well. Still others, who did have the privilege of working from home, were faced with shouldering the bulk of unpaid domestic labor plus new night shifts to accommodate their lack of availability for daytime work, as they stayed home to manage virtual school and fill critical childcare gaps.

While this should come as no surprise — women have faced countless obstacles and hardships for centuries — the pandemic has exacerbated existing disparities and challenges that exist for mothers in particular.

In 2020, we stepped back into the 80s . . .