
How All Politics Became Reproductive Politics
From Welfare Reform to Foreclosure to Trump
Laura Briggs(Author)
University of California Press
1st Edition
Published on 12. September 2017
Book
Hardback
304 pages
978-0-520-28191-2 (ISBN)
Description
Now all politics are reproductive politics, argues esteemed feminist critic, Laura Briggs. Today's economic realities mean we are always at work, and time to care for dependents and communities has evaporated. Our households bear witness to this with trends towards later childbearing, growing use of IVF, widening racial disparities in infant mortality, and popular dependence on risky marriages and mortgages for semblances of security. Meanwhile an immigrant workforce (which is actually more female than male) cares for US households while leaving their own kids in home countries. This brilliant book outlines our crisis and explains how we got here. From Republican and Democrat stories of Black "welfare queens" and Latina "breeding machines" that helped destroy the so-called nanny state to stagnant wages in rising McJobs, and from a Queer turn to same-sex marriage to the blame game for the subprime crisis, Laura Briggs shows how from the 1980s to Trump and beyond, our current woes are anything but our fault.
Reviews / Votes
"Makes a convincing argument that reproductive labor is at the heart of all public conversation and policy over the past several decades. . . . She manages to pull off this extensive examination in just 212 pages, using language that is accessible to those who are new to the material, while also creating crucial new understanding for those who consider themselves informed on gender and politics and/or people who are examining ways to use public policies to create change as part of broader justice movements." * Rewire * "Offers readers a way to understand how neoliberalism's solutions run absolutely counter to social needs." * Against the Current * "This engaging book covers feminist theory and how it views a divergence of issues since the 1970s. Excellent for collections on feminism, current affairs, and American politics." * Choice * "Briggs concludes dramatically that 'in the US . . . there is no outside to reproductive politics.' Until governments and business pay attention to this, the crises of our time will only deepen-and not just in the US." * Times Higher Education Supplement * "Offers readers a way to understand how neoliberalism's solutions run absolutely counter to social needs." * In These Times * "Makes a clear and significant contribution to our understandings of reproductive politics." * Gender and Society * "Briggs handles complex politics clearly and straightforwardly. Her text is well-suited for academics and activists alike." * RGWS: A Feminist Review *More details
Series
Edition
First Edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Berkerley
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
1 table
Dimensions
Height: 208 mm
Width: 147 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
454 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-520-28191-2 (9780520281912)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Laura Briggs
How All Politics Became Reproductive Politics
From Welfare Reform to Foreclosure to Trump
Book
08/2018
1st Edition
University of California Press
€24.00
Shipment within 10-20 days

Laura Briggs
How All Politics Became Reproductive Politics
From Welfare Reform to Foreclosure to Trump
E-Book
09/2017
1st Edition
De Gruyter
€24.49
Available for download
Person
Laura Briggs is Professor and Chair of the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She is the author of several books on gender and empire, including Reproducing Empire: Race, Sex, Science, and U.S. Imperialism in Puerto Rico and, most recently, Somebody's Children: The Politics of Transracial and Transnational Adoption. She also serves as an editor for the University of California Press American Crossroads series.
Content
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. "Radical Feminism's Misogynistic Crusade" or the Conservative Tax Revolt?
2. Welfare Reform: The Vicious Campaign to Reform 1 Percent of the Budget
3. Offshoring Reproduction
4. The Politics and Economy of Reproductive Technology and Black Infant Mortality
5. Gay Married, with Children
Epilogue: The Subprime
Notes
Index
Introduction
1. "Radical Feminism's Misogynistic Crusade" or the Conservative Tax Revolt?
2. Welfare Reform: The Vicious Campaign to Reform 1 Percent of the Budget
3. Offshoring Reproduction
4. The Politics and Economy of Reproductive Technology and Black Infant Mortality
5. Gay Married, with Children
Epilogue: The Subprime
Notes
Index