“Single Mothers by Choice”: Disrupting Dominant Discourses of the Family Through Social Justice Alternatives

Abstract

This paper seeks to disrupt the dominant narrative of victimhood associated with the single mother family status. There are many barriers and difficulties associated with this status such as economic insecurity and political and social stigma. However, there are also many rewards and possibilities that make this family status desirable and rich with possibilities. Single mother families challenge the dominant paradigm of heteronormativity found within the notion of traditional nuclear family households. Drawing on critical feminist and queer theoretical perspectives and qualitative research from my doctoral studies, I will discuss how participants created a new narrative for themselves and their children. In particular, I focus on single mothers engaged in critical pedagogy and curriculum and community activism to seek connections with others who also viewed their families from a strengths perspective. "Single mothers by choice" establishes itself in its own right as a formidable alternative to dominant notions of the "family".

Single Mothers Employed in the Formal Work Sector in Germany and South Africa

“…These single mothers who were working full-time had to count on support from domestic helpers, friends and/or extended family members for child-care (Martin & Alber, 2015). This corroborates the findings by Ajandi (2011), who revealed that single mothers' quest for independence contributed to elevating their self-efficacy and self-esteem. As Bourdieu (1976) postulated, the habitus of a person is incumbent on making positive life choices for improved access to education and enhanced human capital and this correlates with economic and social capital development.…”

“…However, the limitation was that the menial income received from the state child support grant in South Africa placed severe restrictions upon single mothers who wanted to pursue post-secondary education (Raniga & Mathe, 2011). In this study the participants noted that post-secondary education was perceived by their line managers in their respective work sectors as a necessity and that their decision to pursue long-term education had improved their human capital development and upward mobility in the formal work sector (Ajandi, 2011). Hence it was not surprising to note from Table 1 that 20 (80%) of the women had secured well-paying jobs in either government, the private sector or higher education institutions.…”

“…Zagel and Hübgen (2018) found in a comparative study of various European welfare states that the difficulties associated with single-mother family status is the interplay between inadequate resources, poor access to job opportunities and inadequate policies to support domestic and child care responsibilities. In addition, single mothers often experience economic insecurity through wage inequality, precarious low-paid contract jobs, political and social stigma Ajandi, 2011); (Nieuwenhuis & Maldonado, 2018. In South Africa the trend towards more single-parent households over the past decade is similar to that in Germany. The fertility rate of mothers in South Africa is 2.46 children, which is a much lower rate than the African average (4.6) fertility rate (Raniga & Mthembu, 2016).…”

Family Matters: A Strengths-Based Family Resiliency Perspective Toward Improving the Health of Young Women Experiencing Homelessness

“…Although many of the young women in this research come from abusive homes, their extended families or kinship networks are not a part of -and are often a refuge from -the abusive situations. Although commonly employed in the policy arena, narrow definitions of family that support a traditional and conservative view of family as consisting of those inside a nuclear family unit are hugely limiting, and fail to account for the wide range of personal connections that exist outside of that definition, be they extended biological families or families of choice (Quinless, 2013;Ajandi, 2011). Grandmothers, in particular, were often discussed as beloved and supportive, providing safe spaces for their grandchildren in times of need (McCaffrey, 2010;Sands, Goldberg-Glen, & Shin, 2009).…”

On Being Unable to be A Single Mother by Choice in Turkey

“…In addition, children who grow up without a father are problematic children. In order to change this perception and have healthy kids, single mothers need the protection of men (Ajandi 2011;Wiegers and Chunn, 2015;Smith 1997). The mothers who have been judged in every field throughout history are the ones who have kids without being married.…”