Defining motherhood

In media and politics motherhood is a popular topic of debate, encouragement, or criticism. One frequently hears and reads critiques of various women’s parenting practices. It is a matter of intense public fascination, to the extent that numerous television shows are devoted to housewives and mothers, and people seem to take a self-righteous pleasure in crucifying women who veer off the “perfect mommy” path. Rarely, if ever, do we see articles or TV shows about “bad” fathers or “bad” husbands. I see this as part of the backlash against feminism and the progress made for women in the last century, because the discourse of motherhood relegates women to the domestic sphere and often labels the women who take advantage of their new rights in the workforce as “bad” mothers. However, in “Will the real mother please stand up?” Collins points out that the obsession with motherhood is more than just a frantic response to the expanding role of women in contemporary society. She also explains how these ideals are actually embedded in American laws as a means of biologically maintaining the majority of the white race in the US. This is summed up in the following quote:

“In the politicized climate of late-twentieth-century America, the issue of which women are “real” mothers best oriented for the task of reproducing both the American population and the alleged values of the US nation-state takes on added importance…Within this intellectual framework, women deemed fit to be “real” mothers encounter state supported family-planning options that support their contributions as mothers to traditional well-being. In contrast, those deemed unfit to be “real” mothers experience reproductive policies that are markedly different” (Collins, p.1).

The state seeks to regulate female reproduction as a means of controlling American population demographics. The ideal American citizen fits a very specific description, and the state enacts policies that encourage and support the production of perfect citizens, while discouraging and obstructing the production of undesirables. The female body becomes the vehicle through which certain groups are created or destroyed. Although it is not overtly stated, our laws perpetuate the goals of white supremacist eugenics. However, as evidenced by the frequent articles deploring overpopulation in “developing” (read “non-white”) nations, while lamenting low population growth in Europe and among white Americans, the discourse of eugenics is not exactly concealed. There is a palpable sense of panic among white societies about the decline of white populations because this means that the long history of white supremacy is coming to an end.


The state’s involvement in women’s reproductive health and the public discussion of the female body dehumanizes women and assigns outside agencies the power over intimate aspects of women’s lives. It disturbs me that my reproductive choices are a valid conversational topic and that simply because I am a woman, I am automatically perceived as a potential mother. I resent the assumption that I want to have children, and the horror or dismissal I am subject to when I state that I do not want to be a mother.