VERY, VERY INTERESTING. This from the Nw York Times.

A generation of mothers who are largely perceived as postfeminist in
every way, from sex to economic discrimination, has begun a
consciousness-raising that is almost old-fashioned were it not for the
technology involved. Raised to believe that girls could accomplish
anything, these women have reached parenthood, only to find they faced
many of the same pay, equity and work-family balance issues that were
being fought over decades before. From that awakening, they say, has
come the inkling of a new movement.

In many ways, these groups
are repackaging issues that have been around for nearly 50 years and
have proven intractable despite the efforts of legions of activists,
lawyers and elected officials.

An organization What MomsRising has done, the organizers say, is frame its
concerns as family and economic issues, which resonate for a younger
generation of women. (They say they will include the fathers later.)

It is not a coincidence that MomsRising is using the tactics of MoveOn.org, the influential liberal organizing site that helped propel Howard Dean’s presidential candidacy. One of the group’s founders is Joan Blades, who, with her husband, Wes Boyd, founded MoveOn.

MomsRising is the newest and most prominent in a loose coalition of
advocacy groups, including Mothers & More, the Mothers Movement
Online, Mothers Ought to Have Equal Rights and the National Association
of Mothers’ Centers, that are sharing information, joining together at
rallies and signing one another’s petitions.

They, in turn, are starting to form alliances with labor groups and traditional feminist groups like the National Organization for Women. And they are communicating with what some might see as unlikely allies: traditional family values groups like the Christian Coalition.

The
various mother’s rights groups are concentrating much of their effort
at state legislatures. In Washington State, they met with the speaker
of the house about passing a bill that would allow employees to be paid
if they take family- or medical-leave time, and in California, they
have proposed legislation that would make it illegal to discriminate
based on family status. Senator Sheila Kuehl has agreed to author the
bill, which is to be introduced this week. They are also hoping to be
heard during next year’s presidential race.

It’s difficult to
know just how big the burgeoning movement is. MomsRising, which has
been around since last May, has attracted 80,000 members from around
the United States. The goal, organizers say, is to build a nonpartisan
grass-roots movement millions strong.