Women win the mother of all battles on the home front

A referendum this month to erase a woman’s work in the home from the Irish constitution was rejected by 74 per cent of voters. Picture: AFP

The clear message Ireland recently sent to the feminist elite the world over is that the masses will not tolerate the erasure of womanhood or mothers. Women want to be acknowledged and supported in their role of caring for babies and young children. The steady march of feminists arm in arm with so-called progressives can no longer get away with leaving everyday women behind.

A referendum this month to erase a woman’s work in the home from the Irish constitution was rejected by 74 per cent of voters. The overwhelming No vote is a frightening insight into just how out of touch people in positions of leadership can be with the general population. It cost Ireland €23m ($38.1m) to indulge the ideological aspirations of a small minority who wish to erase mothers and erode a woman’s right to care for her children.

The referendum proposed to remove part of Article 41, which reads: “The state recognises that by her life within the home, woman gives to the state a support without which the common good cannot be achieved. The state shall, therefore, endeavour to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labour to the neglect of their duties in the home.”

This section was to be replaced with gender-neutral phrasing that erased “woman” and “mother” but also appeared to reduce the state’s obligation to support women in the foundational work of care. The amended section read: “The state recognises that the provision of care, by members of a family to one another by reason of the bonds that exist among them, gives to society a support without which the common good cannot be achieved, and shall strive to support such provision.”

It’s not just a matter of constitutional semantics that the Irish public voted on – they voted on how women should be valued in society, their visibility and how their unpaid work should be supported. The public wish to retain the constitution in its current form because it protects a woman’s right to work both outside and inside the home, as long as the decision is made freely. Under the current economic conditions, it’s the woman’s right to work inside the home that is most at risk.

The Irish public voted on how women should be valued in society, their visibility and how their unpaid work should be supported. Picture: AAP Image

The people of Ireland wish to safeguard and support a mother’s right to care for her family. Whether or not the Irish government, or any nation, is capable of upholding such an obligation is another question entirely. The message from mothers across the world has been loud and clear for decades – we can’t afford not to return to paid work. In the face of this gross incursion upon a woman’s freedom of choice, most nations simply promoted this as the new norm and “economic growth”. A woman’s work in the home was framed as an unnecessary luxury. Not in Ireland.

Ireland’s care referendum could be considered valuable as a rare case study that demonstrates the disconnect between elite career women who influence policy and the masses of women with jobs who have to live out the reality of the policy.

The imbalance of power among women and the vastly different goals of career women compared with the general population make for a dysfunctional women’s movement that ultimately benefits a select few. Most women want to be valued and supported in all the work they already do, whether inside or outside the home, paid or unpaid. On the other hand, career feminists believe women should simply achieve equality by doing different work. A certain kind of work. Women can be equal if they do “better” work.

The referendum is a refreshing departure from the usual echo chambers where wealthy professional women discuss the virtues of their choice to prioritise their careers and set about developing ways to impose their “better choices” on the rest of the population. For most of human history, it’s been the views of a minority group of women informing policy and dominating public discourse. The majority of women have been typically unable to afford the time and expense, and didn’t have the social standing or education historically required to engage in public and policy discussion. The majority of women have lacked the cultural and political influence required to develop policy that actually helps them, while women in leadership positions have failed to represent the interests of women from diverse backgrounds.

It’s astonishing what happens when the views of everyday people are actually publicly aired and taken into consideration. The chasm between what the top end of town thought was good for women and what grassroots women actually want was wider than anyone could have predicted.

The orchestrators of the referendum have been caught red-handed infantilising women, assuming they know what is best for them and imposing their own value systems on a diverse group. The only way to recover from this embarrassment, to redeem themselves, is a period of deep reflection and soul-searching. A 74 per cent No vote cannot be explained away by excuses of people being degenerates or not understanding the proposal. People in power cannot continue casting themselves as the enlightened and anyone who opposes them as backward.

The results in Ireland alone might not have necessarily reflected global trends except for the democratisation of the women’s rights movement now playing out across the internet. Mothers working inside the home now carry a tiny handheld portal to government hearings, parenting forums, social media platforms, national discussions and political debate.

Women engaging in care work inside the home are no longer locked out of public debate and cultural influence. Platforms and discussions that were once the sole domain of professionals and leaders are slowly being colonised by grassroots people. The smartphone, and the occasional referendum, are making their views impossible to ignore or overlook.