One in four American children lives with a single parent. However, America’s policies and institutions are still modeled around the traditional two-parent household where one parent works and the other stays at home. Hosts Kimberly Brooks and Gina Brillon unpack how that idea contributes to the modern-day caregiving crisis, how it is hitting single-parent families the hardest, and the vast disparities in policies across the U.S. that support solo parents.

Visit TheStateofWomenpod.com for more information on the podcast and ways to take action in the fight for women's rights. 

Advocate for moms to be supported and paid by advocating for paid paternal leave, onsite daycare, a living wage, universal preschool, and onboarding programs for women returning to work. Take action with Marshall Plans for Moms. Learn more about changes to the care economy at Melinda Gates’ Pivotal Ventures. Check out In Her Hands, a pilot project of Give Directly and Georgia Resilience Fund that puts money into Black mothers’ hands as a universal income experiment. These non-profits provide financial resources and housing support for single mothers.

“The State of: Women” is produced in collaboration by Population Media Center, Clamor, and Reasonable Volume. Episodes written by Elise Hu. Executive Producers are Gina Brillon, Kimberly Brooks, Lisa Caruso, Alex Demyanenko, Adam Reynolds, Allison Chesneau, Elise Hu, and Rachel Swaby. The series was created by Lisa Caruso & Alex Demyanenko.

Producers are Erica Lowy and Maddie Zampanti. Associate Producers are Lillian Holman and Justin Cho. Editing by Maddie Zampanti and assistant edited by Justin Cho. Audio Engineer is Claire Reynolds. Research by Bethy Squires. Fact checking by Carmel Dagan. Original cover art by Jazmine Johnson and Match Zimmerman.

PMC’s Impact and Partnerships Strategist is Charity Tooze. PMC’s Manager of Creative Development is Dominica Ruelas. Additional special thanks to June Neely of PMC and Aaron Hilliard and Molly Cody of Clamor.