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The Black Breastfeeding Blog was created by Jennifer James as a way to reach black mothers who are currently breastfeeding or who want to breastfeed in the future. As a former breastfeeding mother of two daughters (who she breastfed for two years each), Jennifer believes in the powerful healing properties of breast milk and believes all black moms should at least start the nursing process to increase the health of their babies.

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Why I Cannot Support MomsRising
Thursday, September 6, 2007

Man drinking at "Colored" water cooler in streetcar terminal, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. July 1939.

When Rosie the Riveter became a powerful icon for women, black women war workers had to live in separate dormitories.Government hotel for Negro women war workers. The $760,000 Lucy D. Slowe Residence Hall, first government constructed hotel for Negro women workers in Washington, D.C. has been open for occupancy by the Defense Homes Corporation. The three-story brick building has 299 outside rooms and will accommodate 322 women war. Between fall 1942-April 1943.

When Rosie the Riveter become a powerful icon for women, black people had to get their food from the rear of diners.A rest stop for Greyhound bus passengers on the way from Louisville, Kentucky, to Nashville, Tennessee, with separate accommodations for colored passengers. September 1943.

Labels: just because

posted by Jennifer James @ 9:23 AM,

19 Comments:

At September 6, 2007 10:57 AM,  Eilat said...

Wow, Jennifer, you really opened my eyes. Of course! Since I am white, it never occurred to me and I thank you for bringing this to light. By choosing such a subliminally divisive logo, they are alienating so many mothers. I'm sure it isn't their intention, but the lack of sensitivity is just the thing that MomsRising fights against when it comes from employers and the male establishment. Its very myopic on their part.

 

At September 6, 2007 12:36 PM,  Rose said...

I agree with Eilat. This was very eye-opening and something I never considered. I've always had a fondness for Rosie, but after reading this and your recent posts about how the push to send women to work during WWII separated moms and babies, I see another side of it.

 

At September 6, 2007 4:44 PM,  Radical Catholic Mom said...

Thanks for a powerful post! Have you emailed your concerns to them?

 

At September 7, 2007 9:23 AM,  rach said...

Thanks for your post. I do hope that you will email them at least a link to your post.

It is not WOC's responsibility to teach white women about race.

Momsrising is a great org, they do do a lot of great things. I am a member of momsrising. These oversights and divides show how prevalent rascism is in our county.

At this point, what change would it take from Momsrising for you to support them?

I also wonder how, with sooo many things to divide us, women are ever going to gain the power and numbers to orgnaize, so that finally in this country, womens roles, as mothers are respected and honored.

Great post.

 

At September 7, 2007 9:56 AM,  Paula A.K.A Mama Bear said...

so you would prefer a logo that didnt have a woman of any race? or maybe women from many races?

i doubt that was their intent in choosing the logo. i sure hope to contact them.

mothers are mothers are mothers...we are unified nomatter race etc.

thanks for the post. helps me to see things from a different perspective.

 

At September 7, 2007 10:24 AM,  Jennifer James said...

There are two things I know:

1. MomsRising is a great organization. They have done a tremendous amount for mothers and families in a short period of time.

2. I know by choosing this logo MomsRising did not intend to alienate mothers.

But for me, I was alienated. Rosie means nothing to me. In fact, black women and other mothers of color share no gleeful nostalgia for the period when Rosie came about. I can't even believe MomsRising would choose this logo. They should have simply used a logo like NOW and Planned Parenthood and scores of other women's organizations did where there is no racial or cultural divisiveness involved.

For me, this is just another example of how black mothers don't matter.

 

At September 7, 2007 11:37 AM,  rach said...

In attempting to clarify, do you find the rosie logo offensive?
Rosie means nothing to me a 30 something american woman. In fact as evident in your posts, she can be seen representing a time that had a negative effect on women and childrens health...in that working women have a harder time breastfeeding, child rearing becomes more complicated etc...

I'm just really struck by your comment that MR is another organization tells 'black mothers that they don't matter'

Logos aside, the work that they are doing the policies that they are promoting:
M - Maternity/Paternity Leave: Paid family leave for all parents after a new child comes into the family.

O - Open Flexible Work: Give parents the ability to structure their work hours and careers in a way that allows them to meet both business and family needs. This includes flexible work hours and locations, part-time work options, as well as the ability to move in and out of the labor force to raise young children without penalties.

T - TV We Choose and Other After-School Programs: Give families safe, educational opportunities for children after the school doors close for the day, including: Create a clear and independent universal television rating system for parents with technology that allows them to choose what is showing in their own homes; support quality educational programming for kids; increase access to, and funding, for after school programs.

H - Healthcare for All Kids: Provide quality, universal healthcare to all children.

E - Excellent Childcare: Quality, affordable childcare should be available to all parents who need it. Childcare providers should be paid at least a living wage and healthcare benefits.

R - Realistic and Fair Wages: Two full-time working parents should be able to earn enough to adequately care for their family. In addition, working mothers must receive equal pay for equal work.

S- Sick Days, Paid: All people should have access to paid sick days.

Those are all issues that support working moms, many of whom are WOC...I don't understand how based on a logo you can make a blanket statement like that. Surly the work an organizaions does is more telling of their inclusiveness than a logo?

I am in no way trying to dismiss any feelings that you have about the logo. I am just trying to understand? Is it the perceived (or real, i don't know, do you?) lack of imput of WOC in the organizational power structures that alienates you? and makes you feel like black mothers don't matter?

this is such an important discussion for us as women of all races to have, so that we can get behind one another and give our support to each other, so all women benefit.

in peace

 

At September 7, 2007 11:56 AM,  Jennifer James said...

Hi Rach,

MomsRising does fantastic work. There is no question about that. And there is no question that the work they do helps WOC as well as mothers of all races.

I just cannot get past their logo. It tells me that MomsRising cares about white mothers and white babies. And then to take it further, they care about the principles and values created around the time of Rosie the Riveter and racism was rife during that time.

Rosie symbolizes women's empowerment and therefore they merged the Rosie symbol with motherhood. But, they disregarded the underlying values that come along with Rosie, one of which was rampant racism.

I don't have a problem with Rosie. I have a problem with a modern organization using Rosie as a symbol of motherhood for mothers of all races because Rosie isn't a symbol of womanhood for all races of women.

Thanks for wanting clarification. And if you have any other questions, or even other observations to add, please do.

One more thing, it makes me question whether there are mothers of color who work intimately with the organization. And if so, what do they think about the logo?

 

At September 7, 2007 1:02 PM,  rach said...

I don't have a problem with Rosie. I have a problem with a modern organization using Rosie as a symbol of motherhood for mothers of all races because Rosie isn't a symbol of womanhood for all races of women.

Thanks Jennifer, that makes it perfectly clear.

 

At September 7, 2007 1:54 PM,  Elizabeth G said...

Jennifer,
I had to take a deep breath before responding. I find much more racism in your post than I do in the mom's rising logo. I don't know much about the beginnings of mom's rising, perhaps it started with two white girls sitting around thinking they wanted to help mothers. Perhaps they did not consult any black friends, perhaps they didn't consult any asian, mexican, jewish, french, or arabic friends either before choosing their logo. Perhaps they did consult a black friend who simply didn’t see things the way you do.

Simply because something is from the past and in the past groups were repressed, does not make the two things synonymous. Today slavery is happening in many parts of the world, today, not many years ago, but right now as we speak. Should we avoid all things African because right now in Africa there are human rights violations? Should we be upset with any Olympic sponsors of American teams because today christians and others are being persecuted in China where the next Olympics is being held?

We need to stand together and stop making things white-black issues. I was once in a small town in Texas and took a picture of a building at 9:00 at night. There were several people in the shot of mixed races. A black man who happened to be in the shot came up to me and questioned me about it. He said, among other things, that I had no business taking pictures of black men and didn't I know there was a race problem in that area? It had not even occurred to me that I was “taking a picture of a black man” I was taking a picture of a building and there were people in the foreground.

He was trying to intimidate us. We left and went to a restaurant, and just for a moment I was a little intimidated by a totally different young black gentleman who was there eating just as we were. I was really upset by those thoughts as I had not been scared of any one race over another before and within a few minutes was able to mentally view him as I always would have before, just as a person. I realized there may well be a race problem in that town, but in this instance at least, it was started by a black man.

If we keep bringing it up, and keep using it against each other, we will always have racism. I don't care what color you are, I love and treat everyone the same. Why would you care what color I am?

 

At September 7, 2007 2:06 PM,  Jennifer James said...

Elizabeth,

Thanks for sharing your perspective. I disagree. In choosing their logo MomsRising alienates an entire group of mothers -- subliminally.

Today, people want us all to have selective memories and let ugly pieces of our history get a pass because they are "historic".

I can't help but bring race up because I live as a black woman in America. Race and racism are real, whether intentional or not. Most things are black and white.

 

At September 7, 2007 3:00 PM,  Pixie LaRouge said...

I had never thought of race with the MomsRising logo. My problem with it was always the portrayal of a working mother, when I am not a (paid) working mother. My strength is not from a job; my strength is shown in the way I take care of my family. And, perhaps this sounds petty, but I'm not a "big, powerful woman." I'm a tiny, fiery, proud woman. Rosie has always just, well, irritated me. Hmm, must wander off to write letter MomsRising...

 

At September 7, 2007 4:44 PM,  Eilat said...

I have to agree with Jennifer here too. Contrary to what Rach said:

"It is not WOC's responsibility to teach white women about race."

I think we all have a responsibility to make our perspective clearer to people who don't share our experience. I say this as a Jewish woman who encounters all sorts of subtle anti-semitism all the time. Most people aren't aware and don't mean it, but the consequences of letting certain mentalities off the hook because they aren't intentional are that they then permeate the culture
and become a problem.
Sports teams that use Native American symbols as mascots come to mind as an example. They don't mean to make fun of a people whose culture, way of life, and actual members are nearly extinct because of something "in the past". But it can certainly be perceived that way, and rightly so.

Elizabeth thinks Jennifer's reaction is racist, but it is important to appreciate that symbols are powerful. Another example that comes to mind is the swastika. In India and Hinduism it is a symbol of well-being. If an organization that claimed to be inclusive used such a symbol while doing very good things, you bet id be against it! History matters, you cant avoid it.

 

At September 7, 2007 5:03 PM,  Jennifer said...

I find this discussion very enlightening, and tend to agree with Eilat that "we all have a responsibility to make our perspective clearer to people who don't share our experience."

To me, Rosie is not at all a symbol of motherhood. To me she symbolizes that feminism = being more like men, that in order to be thought equal to men, we must behave like them. She is a symbol that motherhood is incedental to the real, important work that needs to be done. This is not my brand of feminism, and I was never fond of her use in the Mom's Rising logo, even though I fully support many of the organizations causes.

I agree with Jennifer that " I have a problem with a modern organization using Rosie as a symbol of motherhood....because Rosie isn't a symbol of womanhood for all ... women. "

I agree that the thoughless use of a symbol does have subtle, pervasive effects on sociey. In fact, I believe the formula companies and bottle manufacturers, for one, profit extensively from this very concept.

 

At September 9, 2007 9:48 PM,  roslynholcomb said...

My problem with Rosie is pretty much the same as yours Jennifer. We have to understand that many white women gained their 'freedom' from the drudgery of housework through the exploitation of black women. My mama would've loved to have had access to the relatively high paying defense jobs during the war, but in the Jim Crow south this was out of the question. So, she took care of white women's children, cleaned their houses and fought off sexual advances and damned near rape from their husbands. If anything Rosie is a symbol of exploitation and the denigration of black womanhood to me.

 

At September 10, 2007 10:53 AM,  Jennifer James said...

I am so glad many of you commented on this issue. That's why I love blogging -- instant conversations.

Pixie -- great point!

Eilat -- perfect analogy!

Roslyn -- absolutely!

 

At September 12, 2007 12:20 AM,  Tab said...

Jennifer,

You responded to a comment by saying, "Thanks for sharing your perspective. I disagree. In choosing their logo MomsRising alienates an entire group of mothers -- subliminally."

Because Kentucky Fried Chicken's logo, Colonel Sanders, is white, has the franchise alienated the black population? Have you never eaten at Kentucky Fried Chicken merely based on the fact that their logo is a white man?

And the same question could be asked of Wendy's fast food restaurant... or any other business/product that has a non-black logo or icon: McDonalds, Pringles, or Gerber, just to name a few.

 

At September 12, 2007 8:11 AM,  roslynholcomb said...

Tab, once again, KFC and none of those places are purporting to promote the needs of ALL mothers. If MomsRising called themselves WhiteMomsRising, then they can logo themselves all they want. Those people are selling merchandise, they're not calling themselves an advocacy group.

Now, I'm done arguing about this issue, because frankly, I decided a long time ago that discussion of racial matters with white people is futile. The defensiveness is absurd, and frankly just plain irritating. Jennifer's position its Jennifer's position. I doubt she's going to but MR out of business, so why all the histrionics?

 

At September 12, 2007 12:23 PM,  Jennifer James said...

Roslyn -- I've also had quite a few futile race conversations in my life. I think I'll stick this one out for a day or two more if it goes that long.

A lot of readers have received my point quite well. And those who haven't have expressed valid concerns.

 

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