Fair Start Movement

Author: Fair Start Movement

  • The Rights Of and To Nature – What They Mean for Future Generations. Apr 7, 2021 09:00 AM in Pacific Time (US and Canada)

    The Rights Of and To Nature – What They Mean for Future Generations. Apr 7, 2021 09:00 AM in Pacific Time (US and Canada)

    Join the International Animal Law Committee of the American Bar Association’s International Law Section for a great discussion.

    Register here.

    As the rights both of and to nature emerge and solidify in the minds of the public, and in law and policy, they will entail greater investment in and empowerment of future generations. This panel will explain why.

    It begins with the lead attorney, Jessica Blome, in a case currently pending before the Ninth Circuit that argues the Constitution implies a right to nature, including a regenerative standard for environmental policies, under the liberty doctrine. That right aligns with the international rights of nature groups like Earth Law Center promote, and it would help further them, legislatively and otherwise.

    Tony Zelle, will present on those rights, from an international perspective, detailing their history and future. Cat Hughey, will explain what the rights to/of nature entail for reforming our family planning systems, from the United Nations to state ballot initiatives. And finally, Michael Swistara and Max Broad will discuss the local implications of these movements for the District of Columbia, where efforts to promote legislation that would ensure every child a socially and ecologically fair start in life might begin.

    A hazy, polluted city skyline with the quote: Explain to future generations that it was good for the economy when they can’t farm the land, breathe the air, or drink the water. - Unknown. Having Kids logo at bottom.
  • Power Grid Failures Show Threats of Population Growth: Take Action

    Power Grid Failures Show Threats of Population Growth: Take Action

    The recent climate-driven grid failures in Texas highlight a key threat to our children’s future: Systems upon which more and more people are dependent, and which themselves are threatened by that very growth. Nothing exacerbates these “loop” problems, like the ecologies upon which we are dependent and which the climate crisis threatens, more than poor and unsustainable family planning.

    Not everyone is at the same level of risk in these situations. The wealthy people and their families who have benefitted from population growth, like Ted Cruz and his kids (who vacationed in Mexico while poor children in Texas died), find ways to avoid the risk.

    How do we solve this problem? While big government and big business want unsustainable population growth to continue, and who together created the unsustainable family planning systems that create growth by exploiting future generations, human rights point in a different direction.

    Infographic titled Better Family Planning, Simply Put with icons and three points: Delaying parenthood, smaller families, and community support, each explained with brief text and blue graphics.

    If we are willing to plan responsibly, we have the right to take the resources necessary from the top – and people like Cruz – in order to ensure all children a Fair Start in life. Why? Because having kids is the first and overriding human right. It comes before the exploitative systems that government and corporations conspired to create.

    Contact Ted Cruz and urge him to support Fair Star reforms that will protect Texans in the long run, and to ensure justice for all.

  • Why Is Congress Making the Climate Crisis Worse, and Reinforcing Economic Inequity?

    Why Is Congress Making the Climate Crisis Worse, and Reinforcing Economic Inequity?

    Congress Could Have Recognized Children’s Right to a Fair Start in Life. Instead It’s Treating Them as Cheap Future Labor.

    The Senate’s debate of stimulus legislation that includes significant child-care and tax changes is an opportunity for the United States to recognize every child’s right to a Fair Start in life, ecologically and socially, and radically transform the way we plan families. 

    Instead, per the New York Times and Forbes, the Senate is pushing what one Nobel Laureate called a population growth Ponzi scheme. The legislation does not eliminate the massive wealth gap between black and white families or encourage sustainable family planning that does not severely exacerbate the climate and other ecological crises. Smaller families can have 20 times the impact on the climate crisis as other measures. 
     
    Fair Start, the better approach, would pivot to:
    • Cut all benefits for wealthy families and dramatically expand them for poor families, making the rich pay to offset the unearned privileges their children enjoy in life.
    • Incentivize better family planning, and smaller and more sustainable families for everyone, through things like delaying childbirth until parents are really ready.
    • This is key: These moves can make the legislation antiracist and regenerative and can lay the groundwork to eliminate child abuse and recognize our fundamental human right to nature.
     
    We can do better than pushing women to have kids. Let’s restore nature and level the playing field at birth for all kids. That’s how we create a legitimate society. It’s called Fair Start. It’s the first and overriding human right, and as such, we may achieve it by all means effective. Here is an example of that type of better approach, one that Sen. Cory Booker can easily promote as the Senate debates. We should use funding to fundamentally change the way we plan families to maximize investments in future generations and to compensate them for the harm we have caused. 
     
    Sen. Mitt Romney, a Mormon with five wealthy children, is using the excuse of child poverty to push population growth as means of creating cheap future labor, increased consumption, and a bigger tax base that will benefit his privileged kids.  It’s similar to the Ivanka Trump approach to families and the future. 
     
    The current proposals do nothing to ensure all children some minimum level of well-being, equal opportunities in life, a safe and natural environment, and an effective voice in democracies or systems of self-rule. The proposals further the exclusion of people from their own governance, rather than inclusion, and are setting the stage for further political violence in the future as the gap between rich and poor, in a degraded environment, worsens.  

    What You Can Do Today

    Call Kamala Harris and these four key senators today, and make your case for every child’s right to a Fair Start in life: 

    ·       Cory Booker
    ·       Elizabeth Warren
    ·       Amy Klobuchar
    ·       Bernie Sanders

    And donate here to promote every child’s right to a Fair Start in life, the most effective way to protect our shared future. 

  • International Women’s Day: Fight for Every Child’s Right to a Fair Start in Life

    International Women’s Day: Fight for Every Child’s Right to a Fair Start in Life

    Today is International Women’s Day, but for many women around the world there is little reason to celebrate. Constant discrimination is bad enough, but women are also subject to incredible violence throughout the world and in every aspect of their lives.

    The figures are staggering.

    If we are serious about elevating women, we won’t just change what we are doing in the short term, but will also focus on changing who we are as people. We will become a people incapable of the atrocities we commit today. Good family planning and parenting play a massive role in that betterment. It’s the change that really matters. But it will take reforms at the highest levels of governance to make the real change happen.

    kids climate change

    Right now both the United Nations and the Biden administration are failing miserably in this process, and instead of developing future generations around an ethic of care that would protect women, both remain locked in an antiquated and patriarchal system that pushes women to have children in order to grow economies. The systems they use isolate families and subject women to the promise of familial autonomy, which in the reality of our world becomes a license for men to simply subjugate them in private. The parent-focused (read men-focused) family planning policies guarantee future children no levels of wellbeing, no equal opportunities in life, no safe and natural environment, and no real and effective voice in their democracies.

    We can help all women, now and all those who will live in the future, by treating every child’s right to an ecologically and socially fair start in life as the overriding human right, and switching to a child-focused form of family planning.

    Take action: Urge the United Nations, and the Biden administration, to finally embrace the fact that every child has a right to a Fair Start in life. We will use their own children a benchmarks for what fairness means as we begin to fight for the rights of the most vulnerable.

  • Sustainable Family Planning? Alec Baldwin Says “Shut the F–k Up.” Instead Let’s Confront Him

    Sustainable Family Planning? Alec Baldwin Says “Shut the F–k Up.” Instead Let’s Confront Him

    When a fan recently criticized Alex Baldwin for having lots of kids, Alec’s response was: “You should shut the f–k up and mind your own business.”

    Really? Unsustainable family planning is the root cause of the climate and every other ecological crisis that threatens our children, and our future. People choosing to have one child fewer can have twenty times more impact on the climate crisis than alternative measures. If you love your kids and care about the future, how other people plan their families is very much your business. Your and your kid’s right to nature outweighs irresponsible and unsustainable family planning. Push back.

    Thoughtful people should not have to worry about having one or two children because others are having so many.

    By the year 2100, the world population could vary by billions of people, depending on whether the average woman in the world today has one child more or one child fewer in her lifetime. If the average woman alive today has between 2 and 3 children, the world population will grow to as many as 16 billion by 2100.

    What kind of a world do you want for your kids? More crowding, pollution, and inequity, where the average voice does not matter, or a world filled with nature, where every child gets what they need to thrive?

    Now, it’s possible Alec and Hilaria’s sixth child was adopted, which would be laudable. In fact, that’s what Having Kids urged the Baldwins to do some time ago.

    Take Action: Tell tough guy @alecbaldwininsta and urge him to change his statement. He can still join other celebs, like Kate Middleton, in supporting Fair Start family planning reform.

    Nothing has a greater impact on the crises we face today.

    Donate here to the most effective way to better your future.

  • Having Kids Presenting at Harvard: From Restoring Nature to Biden’s Child Care/Tax Plan

    Having Kids Presenting at Harvard: From Restoring Nature to Biden’s Child Care/Tax Plan

    Update: It was a great event! Check out the video here.

    __________________

    Cassie King is an outspoken young advocate for Fair Start family planning reforms. She recently called Vox‘s Matthew Yglesias out for pushing women to have more kids in the middle of the climate crisis.

    Tomorrow she will speak at Harvard Law School along with several others, on your and your kids’ human right to nature, and what it means for family planning policy.

    She is joined by Jessica Blome, one of the leading environmental lawyers in the country, who is also a mom. Here is her video:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCxuzYElDxE

    Why Fair Start family planning reforms?

    They are the most effective change we can make:

    Infographic showing that one child can produce 20 times more greenhouse gas than a person can save by driving a high-mileage car, recycling, or using energy-efficient appliances and light bulbs.

    Want to take action to support this effort, and ensure all children a Fair Start in life? Right now the Senate is debating legislation that seeks to fund child care, and alleviate poverty.

    But it:

    • Does nothing to seriously address the 1/10th wealth gap between black and white families in the U.S.
    • Does nothing to promote smaller and more sustainable families, which is a move with 20x more impact on the climate crisis than many alternatives.
    • Does nothing to end child abuse – instead, it will exacerbate it with a one-size-fits-all approach to family planning incentives.

    Take action: Urge your senator to help Having Kids amend the legislation to promote socially and ecologically fair start family planning, and add your name to our campaign.

  • Guest Author: Time for a New Sustainable Development Goal, One That Truly Works?

    Guest Author: Time for a New Sustainable Development Goal, One That Truly Works?

    Dear World Media,

    Hope for the Earth – at last.

    Today the United Nations Development Programme presented their apologies for having run down our home and the home of a myriad of other species by choosing to completely ignore the content of the Meadows Report. Finally they acknowledged that the Earth has finite resources and that we borrowed recklessly both from future generations and other species.

    As of today a new world Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) has been added:

    SDG 0: Small families for all.  Its aim is to encourage people to stop at a great maximum of two offspring in the name of justice and fairness: Fairness to others, to other species and even to their own children.

    It was finally recognised that a large cohort of elderly people are easier to manage than floods, subsidence, droughts, hurricanes and rising temperatures. It was also realised that the risk of future pandemics locking us all in was not worth carrying on as we are. And last but not least it was realised that they were starting to look ridiculous.

    We thank the United Nations for having the humility to recognise that for the last forty years they were led up the garden path by various funders and interest groups. One big cheer for better things to come

    Wishful thinker

    Take action: Urge UN leadership to abandon the isolation family planning modeling in favor of Fair Start.

    About the author:

    Esther started being concerned about the wounds inflicted to the Earth aged 11 in 1976. She also understood at that time that there were already then far too many humans, considering their acquisitive and wasteful behaviour. Climate change was on her radar very early on, not least because her father was a physicist specialised in thermo-dynamics who left the oil industry in the 1970s to work on renewables. She had a strong link to nature and has been devastated seeing everything taken over and crushed by the human enterprise and all other species disappeared under piles of concrete in a soul crushing manner. When she was young she wished for a couple of children but as time went on she concluded that if her and her husband had any, those children would have a ghastly future ahead of them, so they didn’t try. As such she represents a growing swath of childfree voices in tune with Dave Benatar South African Prof of Philosophy who wrote a book in 2008 entitled “Better never to have been, the harm of coming into existence”: The Case for Not Being Born | The New Yorker

  • Guest Opinion: Practical Solutions to Common Concerns of Parents Working From Home

    Guest Opinion: Practical Solutions to Common Concerns of Parents Working From Home

    Guest author: Emily Graham, MightyMoms.net

    Emily is mother to two daughters, cares about their future, and supports the Having Kids approach. Neither she nor Having Kids received any compensation for this piece.

    Having a baby or toddler as a coworker may sound pretty cute. If you’re a parent who is currently trying to perform this juggling act, though, you know just how stressful things can get. You may have even found yourself in situations where you felt overwhelmed, including the examples below. This is why we are giving you some practical tips for overcoming them, courtesy of Having Kids. 

    “My home is a mess!”

    Chaos and toddlers seem to go hand-in-hand. The first thing you should do to tame the clutter and mess is to cut yourself some slack. If you’re caring for a younger child while working from home, you’re basically working overtime at two full-time jobs. 

    Now, if things have gotten out of control, you can also use some free tips to get your home organized, fast. When you have a few minutes, go around one room and pick up clutter. Also, try to spend a little time cleaning each day so your house stays fresh and doesn’t overwhelm you. Last but not least, open a window for some fresh air. Then, take a deep breath and relax after all of that hard work.

    “I’m working in pajamas” 

    Look we get it — wearing your pajamas is convenient and seemingly smart when you’re chasing after a toddler in-between work and chores. You may feel comfortable working in the same clothes you wore to bed, but as it turns out, spending a few minutes on getting yourself ready for the day will actually help you be more productive. Essentially, you’re letting your brain know it’s time for work. 

    That isn’t to say that you should wear a three-piece suit and fancy heels to work from home. How would you ever keep up with a constantly exploring child in that getup? Instead, put together a few casual looks that can take you from Zoom meetings to zooming after kids. Need to shop for new clothes? Look for promo codes and coupons from stores like Belk to find functional and fashionable outfits for a lot less. 

    “I’m constantly interrupted!”

    There are only two things that will help in this emergency situation: realistic expectations and boundaries. We’ll get to boundaries in just a moment, but first, let’s go over some ways you can create better schedules and routines for your family. You need to plan your work week ahead of time and talk your schedule over with your kids, if possible. If you have a partner or spouse, come up with expectations for how you will split parenting duties. 

    Next, enforce your schedule and routine with boundaries. That may look like working during naptime with toddlers and babies since you can’t very well explain boundaries to them. It could also include setting up your very own office space to create some physical separation. 

    “Sleep is non-existent for me.”

    Not getting enough sleep is a common concern for parents of younger children. But you really do need quality sleep to thrive and avoid burnout. In fact, one trick you can use is to focus on quality rather than quantity. Johns Hopkins recommends trying to rest in cycles of two to four hours, which will hopefully coincide with your kids’ naptimes. Even if you can’t sleep, resting helps! 

    Another important tip for working parents is shutting off electronics before you try to fall asleep. This goes for your work phone and laptop, too, since the light from screens can make it more difficult for your eyes and brain to relax. If you have a habit of checking emails or social media while in bed, stopping now will help you get the quality sleep you need. 

    Working at home with a baby or young child in the mix shouldn’t make you feel burned out or overwhelmed. Having a plan and sticking to consistent routines can help you maximize your productivity. It’s also extremely important that you set boundaries to maintain some order. 

    Donate to Having Kids, a non-profit dedicated to giving every kid a fair start. 

  • South Korea: Change The Population Policy Landscape for the World

    South Korea: Change The Population Policy Landscape for the World

    South Korea is in the midst of making demographic history, with the country’s population itself declining. While other countries have seen the same process unfold, South Korea is unique in that the fall is part of one of the best family planning policy reforms the world has seen. The positive impact on the climate crisis, and on improving each citizen’s role in the democratic process, is astounding. South Korea is showing that nations can break the suicidal collective action problem of a permanent birth and population growth race, to instead help move the world towards an optimal and sustainable world population level.

    The State Pushing Women to Have Kids

    Forces at the top of the population exploitation pyramid Nobel Laureate Stephen Chu once pointed out are fighting back, sounding alarms about South Korea heralding the end of the world. They do not care about the impact falling populations have on values like welfare, nature, and equity. They care that the pyramid – atop which they live – is changing and the free money of unsustainable population growth might be disappearing. These forces said the same about falling population in Japan years ago and impacts on quality of life – and were wrong.

    Unfortunately, South Korea is caving to forces at the top of the wealth and population pyramid, and paying and pushing women to have more kids. In this way, South Korea is a battle ground for whether we stick to unsustainable, nationalistic and pre-constitutional replacement fertility models, or transition to Fair Start family planning systems that use nature as a baseline, and are truly compliant with human rights.

    We should choose the latter, and rather than prop up the wealthy, we should constitute new democracies where each person matters.

    What can we do in this fight for human rights and the future?

    It’s time to change the discourse. This is not about numbers. This is about people, and the first human right – the right to a fair start in life. It’s time to find the wealthy entities and their mouthpieces in the media pushing unsustainable growth, the people driving the exploitation rather than investment in future generations.

    An infographic titled The Fair Start Model explains how parents, communities, and small sustainable families work together to ensure a fair start and high quality of life for all kids.

    It’s time to take the resources they took, the wealth, and instead invest it in future generations. We have the right to take what is necessary for the Fair Start right by all means effective because it comes before – and overrides – property rights. We are before we do. The wealthy collected their power in violation of that right; they never paid the costs they should have. It’s time for them to pay now.

    Step one in this transition?

    The United Nations and Secretary General Antonio Guterres are obligated by the international bill of human rights to support Fair Start, and our just demands, prior to our engaging targets at the top of the wealth pyramid. They are obligated to speak truth with us to the power at the top, and support the just actions to come.

    Urge the United Nations to recognize every child’s right to a Fair Start in life. Tell them to choose justice over greed and inequity.