Two weeks ago I wrote about a government proposal in Germany to give childcare subsidies to parents who stay home and care for their children themselves. (The government already provides government-subsidized day care for parents who work.). In that post, I imagined some of the objections if such a program were suggested in the United States and gave my responses.
Since writing that post, I have seen more of the responses in Germany to the proposal. According to Der Spiegel, a German news magazine: “[T]he center-left opposition has blasted it for promoting an antiquated view of women’s role in society.”
“The Local” reports on the reaction of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development:
“[P]aying a parent to stay at home with their young children could not only reduce Germany’s female workforce, but work against the integration of the country’s migrants – something the government has been striving to promote.
The organization is concerned that the money could become an incentive for women to give up work, and make it less likely they look for a job.”
What I don’t understand about these objections is this: Where is the right of parents to decide for themselves what to do?
Isn’t the “antiquated view of women’s role in society” the idea that everybody has to do the same thing, that they all have to stay at home or they all have to go to work (as in East Germany)? Wouldn’t the modern view be that each woman should have the right to decide for herself whether to stay home or go to work?
If an immigrant mother would rather stay at home with her children, even though they might wind up learning German a little later, isn’t that her choice? Does the government or some political party really think they know what is best for everybody such that they have the right to stop people from doing what they want or to make it so expensive that low-income people really don’t have a choice?
Why can’t we let people choose for themselves?
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