For Mom-in-Chief Michelle Obama and Women Everywhere, It’s About Choice

November 14, 2008 RSS Feed Print

If there is one thing that most unfairly haunts women it is their career choices. Women around the world struggle with what career path to take after graduating from college. And once they've chosen that path they face any number of other obstacles. When I marry should I leave my job? When I decide to have children, should I be a working mom or stay home? If I choose to stay home, when is an appropriate time to re-enter the workforce?

All of these questions make a woman's work life a complicated and very personal thing. It is for this reason I must disagree with my colleague at Thomas Jefferson St., Bonnie. She takes issue with Michelle Obama and her handlers for calling her "Mom-in-chief." Bonnie says she is not a feminist, antifeminist, Republican or Democrat, but I do know she supports women's rights. In my view the most fundamental right women (and men) have is to make their own decisions. Women have successfully advanced in the working world, but we still deserve the right to make our own choices. Just because Michelle Obama is an attorney doesn't mean she can't make the decision to stay at home and support her husband and look after her children. She chose her own path—and that is the truest measure of the success of the women's movement.

Working outside of the home has long been an issue for women. We were judged for doing it and Michelle Obama is being judged for not doing it. Not only is that not fair, it's anti-women's rights. 

  • Click here to read more by Morgan E. Felchner.
  • Click here to read Michelle Obama's first person essay about being first lady.
  • Click here to read more about Michelle Obama.
  • Click here to re ad more by Bonnie Erbe.
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Madonna is donating one of her favorite pairs of Christian Dior shoes to a charity that supports education for Gypsy Romanian children. The shoes, which she signed, will be auctioned at the Ovidiu Rom ball later this month. It's unclear which exact pair she's letting go, but they're towering and gold and probably a better donation option than the Chanel gun-heel shoes she wore the night before her divorce was announced. Then again, only a downright crazy person would part with shoes with guns for heels. And Madonna is definitely not that

www.christiandiorshoes.org

Christian Dior Shoes of MO 9:22PM February 05, 2010

And with there being way more job applicants than jobs, it may be time for women to get resourceful, and find ways to create income outside of the need for employer. Sure, it takes some resourcefulness, and even boldness, but one example of our global economy is that there are over a billion people online, and more people everyday are learning ways to tap into that. Another thing to get in touch with is purpose itself.

Maybe these 2 web addresses will help someone in that regard, They both come highly recommended. leavethejobbehind.com businessintobenevolence.com

T.W. of MO 10:53AM December 20, 2009

Some employees are simply irreplaceable. Take Michelle Obama: The University of Chicago Medical center hired her in 2002 to run “programs for community relations, neighborhood outreach, volunteer recruitment, staff diversity and minority contracting”.

In 2005, the hospital raised her salary from $120,000 to $317, 000 nearly twice what her husband made as a Senator.

Oh, did we mention that her husband had just become a U.S. Senator? He sure had. And that he immediately requested a $1 million earmark for the UC Medical Center, in fact?… You betcha by golly… He surely did. Way to network Michelle!

But now that Mrs. Obama has resigned, the hospital says her position will remain unfilled. How can that possibly be??? Especially if the work she did was vital enough to be worth $317,000?

Oh, by the way, let me add that Michelle’s position was a part time, 20 hour week job at $317,000.00 per year !!

“IN GOD WE TRUST!!”–we better because you sure can’t trust your elected officials.

The Democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.

Thomas Jefferson

Howard of CA 12:33PM September 21, 2009

Morgan Felchner

Morgan Felchner

Morgan E. Felchner is a managing editor at U.S. News & World Report. She is the editor of Voting in America.

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