So I was thrilled to see that they're sponsoring a blog radio series AND a blog carnival on the very topic we were discussing recently on this blog, on a post about Morning Mika's choices: the topic of work life fit, and how it's a systemic problem, not just an individual's issue.
Fem2pt0 is making a comprehensive examination of the topic. Here's what's on offer-- what do you think? Are there pieces of the dialogue not addressed here? Pieces you're looking forward to? Are you going to participate in the blog carnival?
I love how they've articulated this:
We work long hours. We work multiple jobs. We can barely afford healthcare, or we’re doing without. We’re stitching together childcare, or we’re sending our kids to school with H1N1.
We exert ourselves to be good spouses, sons and daughters, parents, members of our community, friends - in snatched moments from being good but insecure employees.
And while we may talk amongst ourselves about hard it is to manage it all, perhaps we feel that this is just life and try to muddle through as best we can, on our own…
…leaving the professional media to define the outlines of America’s work/life story, which has not evolved significantly beyond the 1950’s idea of employee benefits, dad at the office and mom at home — a story that has little to do with our lives today.
Fem2.0’s campaign, Wake Up, This Is the Reality!, aims to change the way our society talks about work, to shift the story away from privileged "balance" and corporate perspectives to one that reflects the reality on the ground for millions of Americans and American families. We need this shift if we want policy makers to know how tough it is out here and move them to act on legislation around such issues as paid sick days, healthcare, child and elder care, equal pay, etc.
To achieve this shift, we must be many and we must be LOUD.
From January 25 to February 5, 2010, Fem2.0 will present a blog radio series - one program a day, each zooming in on how today’s work environment and policies are impacting a particular community. The series’ purpose is to demonstrate how work/life is NOT just a women’s issue but everyone’s issue. There will be more details about each segment very soon.
I. Working Title: Work and Families - How We’re Doing
Monday, January 25, 11:30 AM EST
Host: Gloria Pan
Heather Boushey, Senior Economist, Center for American Progress
Elisa Camahort Page, Co-Founder, BlogHer
Joan Williams, Director, Center for WorkLife Law at UC Hastings
II. Working Title: Work/Life and Men
Tuesday, January 26, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Marc Chimes
Scott Coltrane, Dean, University of Oregon; Author, Gender and Families
Hugo Schwyzer, Blogger, hugoschwyzer.net
Joan Williams, Director, Center for WorkLife Law at UC Hastings
III. Working Title: Work/Life and the LGBT Community
Wednesday, January 27, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Heather Holdridge
Jaime Grant, Director of the Policy Institute, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
Jillian Weiss, Blogger, The Bilerico Project; Associate Professor of Law and Society, Ramapo College
IV. Working Title: Work/Life and Business
Thursday, January 28, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Joanne Bamberger
Deborah L. Frett, CEO, Business and Professional Women’s Foundation
Kathy Korman Frey, Founder, Hot Mommas Project, George Washington University
V. Working Title: Work/Life and Singletons
Friday, January 29, 11:30 AM EST
Host: Marcia Yerman
Page Gardner, Founder, Women’s Voices, Women Vote
Lisa Maatz, Director of Public Policy and Government Relations, AAUW
Melanie Notkin, Founder, Savvy Auntie
VI. Working Title: Work/Life and Latino Families
Monday, February 1, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Veronica Arreola
Ana Roca Castro, Founder, Latinos in Social Media
Catherine Singly, Economic and Employment Policy Analyst, National Council of La Raza
Marisa Treviño, Publisher, www.latinalista.net
VII. Working Title: Work and Seniors
Tuesday, February 2, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Kim Gandy
Ronnie Bennett, Blogger, Time Goes By
Deborah Halpern, Communications Director, National Family Caregivers Association
Deborah Russell, Director of Workplace Issues, AARP
VIII. Working Title: Work/Life and the Military
Wednesday, February 3, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Katie Stanton
Stephanie Himel-Nelson, Director of New Media, Blue Star Families
LAW, Blogger, Liberal Army Wife
Diana Zuckerman, President, National Research Center for Women and Families
IX. Working Title: Work/Life and African-American Families
Thursday, February 4, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Shireen Mitchell
Avis Jones-DeWeever, Director of Research & Policy, Center for African-American Women, National Council of Negro Women
JusticeFergie, Co-Founder, Blogalicious
X. Working Title: Reframing the Work/Life Conversation
Friday, February 5, 1:00 PM EST
Host: Suzanne Turner
Ellen Bravo, Executive Director, Family Values @Work
Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director, Momsrising.org
TBD Lawmaker
The blog radio series is designed to build momentum toward broad participation in the Wake Up, This Is the Reality! blog carnival, unfolding February 6 to 13, 2010. The carnival will span diverse sectors and communities to show that we’re all in this together, and reach from organized advocacy down to the grassroots of everyday people. We’re working to flood the public space with blog posts, opinions and real, personal stories about what it’s like to work in America today.
We Need Your Voice!
Here’s how you can get involved:
1) Help us get the word out! Share this page on Twitter, Facebook and any other communities you belong to.
2) Participate in the live-chat and/or Twittercasts (#fem2 and #worklife) happening during each of the blog talk radio segments. Download the podcast from each segment and share it with your networks.
3) Contribute a post to the blog carnival, either through your own blog or directly to Fem2.0. Send links and/or blog posts to info@fem2pt0.com.
4) Join this list of organizations and blog sites that will be holding their own concurrent work blog carnivals that feed into the larger Fem2.0 effort. Email info@fem2pt0.com to let us know and we’ll add you to the list!
