The fact someone would use the words childless cat lady as an insult infuriates me because of the disrespect it shows. Furthermore, it astounds me how low the morals of individuals can be, but it is more disappointing a group of people consider this acceptable behavior.
There are many reasons someone may not have children, but ultimately, it is no one's business but theirs. Having or not having children has nothing to do with the competencies to succeed in a career. For some, it was a choice; for some, the timing did not work out; for some, their body did not cooperate; for some, it was the state of the state of the world; and for some, it was to break a family cycle. There are many people in my life who do not have children. Regardless of the reason, these people are successful and entitled to participate in democracy.
I do not have children. This was not my choice. At age five, the treatment for my cancer left side effects negatively impacting my chances of having children. I came to peace with this at a young age. I decided post-graduation, I would consider fostering. Someone very close to me discouraged this because of how difficult it would be to only temporarily build a relationship; they were correct because anyone who knows me knows how much I value the relationships in my life. I pivoted to the next plan... post-doctoral graduation, I planned to begin the adoption process. I passed my defense and was starting the research for the adoption process when I got my new terminal cancer diagnosis. Not having children does not make me any less of a person. It allowed me to do other things I would not have been able to do. I was able to teach teachers who impact the lives of hundreds of children. I trained child care directors to operate quality child care programs for communities. I volunteer for national organizations to promote policies to protect and support children. To say I have no say because I have no stake in the country because I do not have children is ignorant. I have dedicated my career to making a better world for children and preparing them to take our country to the next level. This is not the first time I have been told that since I do not have children, I am not allowed to have an opinion. I, like every other childless person, has the right to have a voice in the future of our country.
This rhetoric is ridiculous because if it was true that means people could only do things directly impacting them rather than weigh in on issues important to them. Maybe this is a matter of someone not being properly educated on what democracy means. Let me try to help, democracy is a system of "government of the people, by the people, for the people (Abraham Lincoln, our first Republican president)." This is typically done by citizen voting in local communities to select individuals to represent us at a city, county, state, and national level. Represent us not dictate us. The opposite of democracy is a dictatorship where an individual or small group of elite individuals tell the rest of us what to do and think. America was created as a democracy and every citizen has the responsibility to save our democracy. Whichever political philosophy you align with, I urge you to vote for democracy when you vote over the next few months if you want the future of the country to be secure for the children. The individual policies on varying issues can be negotiated between different groups to find a common ground as we have historically done for multiple decades but only if we preserve democracy.
On the cat lady front, I would have cats with or without children, one has nothing to do with the other. Further evidence of such an ignorant statement. My cats love a box and I love them!
For tonight . . . I'm just sayin' XOXO
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