Katharine Bement Davis (Wikipedia) BY ANYA JABOUR REGENTS PROFESSOR OF HISTORY UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA Parenting , single people and the U.S. birth rate have assumed a greater place in the 2024 presidential campaign than any race in recent memory. Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance was widely rebuked for criticisms he lodged in 2021 against “ childless cat ladies ,” saying they have no “physical commitment” to the country’s future . In August 2024, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, also a Republican, piled on, saying Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has no children to “ keep her humble ,” even though she’s stepmother to two children who call her “ Mamala .” As a historian of women, families and children in the U.S. , I see these biological definitions of motherhood as too narrowly conceived. The past can serve as a reminder that other forms of mothering are important, too. My research offers a broader perspective on women’s experiences of mothering and
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