Latin American women opt against motherhood, defying pressure for higher birth rates

Bangkok Post Group

A growing number of Latin American women are choosing not to give birth in a radical departure from the traditional family roles that have long dominated in the region. - REUTERS

Transcript

00:00In many Latin American cultures, woman equals mother, as traditional family roles have long

00:07dominated in the region.

00:08ISABEL CORTEZ-HOGUIN, Mother of Isabel Cortez-Hoguin

00:09If you are born a woman with reproductive capacity, then you are going to have children

00:13at some point.

00:14But a growing number of women here, like Isabel Cortez-Hoguin, are choosing not to give birth,

00:21in a radical departure from deeply ingrained expectations of motherhood.

00:26It's important to be aware that motherhood is a decision and should never be felt to

00:30be an obligation.

00:34The shift is raising fears of an aging population creating a burden for the taxpayer.

00:41It's also highlighting how a combination of financial constraints, a lack of state support

00:47and a desire to prioritize careers is pushing women like Cortez into imagining a different

00:53future.

00:54That's why she and Eran Sosa-Diaz founded the online global community Nunca Madres,

01:00or Never Mothers, in 2021.

01:02The group offers workshops analyzing topics from societal stigma to workplace discrimination

01:08to personal finance.

01:10ERAN SOSA-DIAZ, Founder, Nunca Madres

01:11Nunca Madres was born not only out of the need for us to be able to talk about these

01:15issues, but also because we know they're not discussed much.

01:21So we wanted to find a way to be able to expand that conversation.

01:27Many members say they feel pressured by relatives who believe they'll regret the decision not

01:32to have a family and have no one to look after them in old age.

01:37Figures show Latin America and the Caribbean has seen the most dramatic decline in birth

01:41rates of any region globally since 1950.

01:46There is little worldwide data on why women choose not to have children, but Nunca Madres

01:51says economic concerns are the top reason women give, including the risk of losing

01:56their jobs or stalling their career progression.

01:59Climate change comes next, as members question the wisdom of raising children in places where

02:04water is being rationed.

02:06NUNCA MADRES OFFERS THE SUPPORT THAT RIGHT NOW WE HAVE FOUND IS MOST NEEDED, BOTH FOR

02:16WOMEN WHO HAVE ALREADY DECIDED NOT TO BE MOTHERS AND FOR WOMEN WHO ARE IN THE PROCESS OF DECIDING

02:20WHETHER OR NOT TO BE MOTHERS.

02:25Global birth rates have shrunk since contraception became widely commercialized in the 1960s.

02:32But experts say poor protection against gender violence and a lack of support for prospective

02:37mothers have contributed to a steeper decline in Latin America.

02:41In Europe, free early child care policies and paternity leave have somewhat helped boost

02:46birth rates.

02:47But experts say not many equivalent policies exist in Latin America, where some governments

02:53are instead increasing restrictions on abortion, contraception and sex education.

02:59As figures from the World Bank show more women in the region have been joining the workforce,

03:04Nunca Madres says it's important for women to have role models that provide alternatives

03:09to motherhood.

03:10When you don't have this representation of women who are not mothers by choice in full,

03:17for example, you can't imagine beyond what you don't see or don't know.

03:25Representation is always important in order to be able to imagine different futures or

03:29different choices.

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