Blackstone’s child-free opinion pieces published in Grazia, Ms., Time
University of Maine sociologist Amy Blackstone, whose book ‘Childfree By Choice’ was published in June, recently had opinion pieces published in Grazia, Ms. and Time. In “Why I’m Child-Free, Not Child-Less” in Grazia, Blackstone wrote that the reasons that she and her husband Lance had “for not wanting to be parents — joy, fulfilment, the desire to nurture relationships, a concern for the future — look very much the same as others’ reasons for opting in to parenthood…The truth is, there are many ways to find meaning, form a family and leave a legacy. For me, and for more and more people today, that path simply doesn’t happen to include being a parent.” In Ms., in response to pundits worried about the declining birth rate in the United States, Blackstone wrote that “more people will not make our country stronger. Healthy children, happy parents, and citizens who choose freely how their households are composed are what make us great.” In her Time piece “I Chose Not to Have Kids. That Doesn’t Mean I Hate Them,” Blackstone wrote, “Some people want to be parents, some are driven by something else — their marriage, their career, travel, animal rescue, environmental activism. Often, though, the way they spend their time and the role they play in their communities and beyond helps make the world a better place for the kids growing up in it. We hear proclamations all the time that it takes a village to raise a child, and childfree people too are an important part of that village.” Blackstone also talked about the child-free choice on Wisconsin Public Radio and in an interview with Fatherly.