Giddings, Scott and Shephard did not respond to requests for comment.
Beth Oppenheimer, executive director of the Idaho Association for the Education of Young Children, was taken aback by the arguments.
After 10 years with the organization, Oppenheimer said she has “seen and heard it all” when it comes to child-care policy in Idaho. She was expecting the arguments against working moms.
“Every time we try to advance more efforts in regard to child care, licensing and regulations, we get, ‘The children should be at home with their mothers,’ ” Oppenheimer said.
But she was particularly taken aback at how lawmakers were using culture-war rhetoric to block a child-care grant.
Idaho Lawmakers Reject Child Care Grant Because Working Moms Are Hurting the Family Unit workingmother.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from workingmother.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
March 4, 2021
A decision by Idaho lawmakers to reject a $6 million federal grant to improve early childhood education and comments from one lawmaker who said mothers belong at home raised the ire of women across the state.
Several dozen gathered Wednesday afternoon at the Idaho Statehouse holding signs with slogans like “Who let the moms out?” to demand that the lawmakers bring back and pass the childhood learning bill.
The grant was awarded to the state by former President Donald Trump’s administration to “support the development of Idaho’s early childhood care and education system” for infants, toddlers and preschoolers. The state education department would have administered it with the help of the Idaho Association for the Education of Young Children, distributing the money to child care programs and other organizations to be used for things like library programs, kindergarten readiness and support for homeschooling families.
GOP Rep Votes No On Early Education: Mothers Shouldn t Come Out Of The Home crooksandliars.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from crooksandliars.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Freddie, Tobias and Daddy Simpson with their snowman in Norwich.
- Credit: Georgina Simpson
Building a snowman is a must whenever a good helping of the white stuff settles on the ground – and this week families across Norwich had even more of an incentive to get creative.
As part of a competition run by this newspaper and Roarr! Dinosaur Adventure, people were asked to reply to a social media post with a photo of their lockdown snowman.
Adam with his snowman in Norwich.
- Credit: Viktorija Norwell
A winner will be selected at random, and will be rewarded with a family-of-four pass to the Lenwade-based theme park.