[ LIFE ]
NO BABY MAMAS Women across several generations are deciding in increasing numbers not to have children. And the reasons why they are choosing not to have kids might surprise you.
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by Brad Bowling The feminist movement of the 1960s and ‘70s birthed the beginning of women fighting for equal pay, equal treatment, and equal opportunity. But by getting more control of their business destiny, they also made decisions about what happened to their body, including if they would have kids.
The trend of not having kids has increased with each generation. Today, millennial women choosing to not have kids has reached uncomfortable levels causing some alarm for those who track birth rates in the country. The decline in US fertility has been driven primarily by a trend
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among young adults to postpone having children. Forty years ago, birth rates among women in their twenties were significantly higher than those of women in their thirties.
Some are blaming the feminist movement for the reduction in women wanting kids. Women in the workplace also meant fewer women at home, birthing children, and raising kids. And the ever-changing landscape of marriage has also limited the number of kids being born. Marriage statistics indicate that less than 50 percent of relationships last. That, along with couples waiting longer to have kids, means that only one or two kids are born per couple. The days of families having four or more kids is a rare occurrence, if at all. For younger people, the idea of having children has vanished, as well as owning a home, finding a career after college, or anything else. For about 61 percent of millennials, one of the main reasons they cite for not having kids is that they simply can’t afford to. That’s the top reason among 44 percent of the overall US population, by comparison.