By Kathleen Guthrie Woods
I got so excited when I saw this article online: “33 Photos That Prove There Is No One Way To Be An American Family.” Bravo, Huffington Post! I jumped in and quickly scrolled through the photos. Wait…what the…where the heck is my family?!?
While I appreciate the idea and effort, and applaud the editors who put together this post of “what an American family looks like,” I was (yet again) so disappointed to discover what isn’t depicted.
Where are the families of two?
Where are the grandparents raising grandchildren?
Where are families made up of friends?
Fortunately, the first comment I read spoke exactly to this, and many other people chimed in, so I felt a little less excluded. But I still feel slighted.
I mean, come on. Out of 33 photos, they couldn’t put in one that showed a family without children?
Kathleen Guthrie Woods is a Northern California–based freelance writer. She is mostly at peace with her childfree status.
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That’s very disappointing. Just had a scroll through the photos and felt the same. So to qualify as a “family”, there has to be at least one child? This reminds me of an acquaintance who says (when talking about couples): “Do they have a family?” when she means “Do they have children?” – I correct her every time and say “They ARE a family (already)”. Good on the woman who says “Not all families have children. A married couple is still a family. My husband is my family even though we don’t have children together”. Not forgetting the single people, where does this leave them? As one of them says: “I am a single woman who lives with my mother, along with my puppy Daisy…if I was asked to have a picture with my family it would be with my mom, my brother and his family and Daisy”. Screw whoever put together those photos. Society is changing, they should get with the programme and include a few of these options. I know it’s all about “children are the future”, but come the f on.
and why celebrate “families” and their diversity when the number of people living alone is growing daily. Are we not part of a diverse society?
also I don’t understand how someone gets to adopt 5 children as a single mum. Did she inherit a ton of money or what?
Yes for sure .. definitely need more recognition for family of 2 .. we are no less than anyone