No more moms, moms and mothers?
On Saturday, the Tagesschau reported online about a draft law by the Ministry of Family Affairs, according to which special leave after childbirth should no longer only be available for mothers, but also for fathers. The Tagesschau made it: “In the future, the partner of the person giving birth should be released two weeks after the birth.”
“Birthing person” instead of mother? Geez! After the self-appointed language police received mass criticism and malice, the editors backtracked, reinserted the term mother. Reason: It led to “misunderstandings”.
What do celebrity moms think of the daring move to oust the word “mother” from German usage? BILD asked.
Pop star Michelle (51, three daughters)
“I’m rarely at a loss for words, but this really is the biggest nonsense I’ve ever heard. It’s sad that something like this is talked about at all and is even discussed in the news. Why do we all have to let every nonsense be forced on us now? I’m proud to be a mother just as I’m proud to be a woman. The word ‘mother’ means a lot to me, and I can’t imagine that in the democracy we live in there is a majority that sees things differently. There really are more important things.”
Michelle on stage
Entertainer and mother Désirée Nick (66, one son)
“I feel privileged to be a woman and a mother.”
Désirée Nick is a mother and wife through and through
Ursula von der Leyen (64, President of the EU Commission and mother of seven):
“When young couples take responsibility for a newborn, both are irreplaceable. But mothers are always mothers, you can’t improve on this title.”
Even a mother of seven: Ursula von der Leyen
TV legend Marie-Luise Marjan (82, “Mother Beimer”, childless)
“As soon as a woman has given birth to a child and assumes responsibility, she is a mother; before that she is a birther. I’m proud to be called Mother Beimer – even if it’s just a TV role.”
As mother Beimer, she was the mother of the nation: “Lindenstrasse” icon Marie-Luise Marjan
Actress Uschi Glas (79, mother of three)
“I’m appalled!!! That, in all seriousness, people even think about it. This whole mess of defacing our language is bad enough, but this is the icing on the cake. I will never forget the moment my three children first called me Mommy. Only a mother can feel that happiness.”
Uschi Glas is appalled by the attempt by the “Tagesschau” to replace the word mother
TV presenter Birgit Schrowange (64, one child)
“I’m a mother and I don’t want to be labeled as giving birth or giving birth.”
Would like to be called a mother: Birgit Schrowange
SPD politician Doris Schröder-Köpf (59, 3 children)
“That sounds like an April Fool’s joke?!”
Doris Schröder-Köpf wants to believe it’s a bad joke
Entrepreneur Dana Schweiger (55, four children)
“Who came up with that? I find it discriminatory that they think the term mother is discriminatory to mothers. I think it’s discriminatory, especially towards adoptive mothers! Because being a mother is not just about giving birth. What if you adopt a newborn? Or a gay couple with a newborn baby? Giving birth doesn’t fit then, does it? A mother is not only defined by giving birth.”
The entrepreneur continues: “A mother is much more. A mother is a life companion, a role model, a personal life teacher. I am proud to be a mother because my purpose in life is to accompany my children and teach them to be good people. If you can do that, your life will have meaning. Being a mother is about role models and love.”
Dana Schweiger (right) with daughter Luna. She thinks there is much more to motherhood than just giving birth
Singer Marianne Hartl (70, two sons)
“I like being a mother because pregnancy and childbirth are the most beautiful, most fulfilling experience for a woman. Mother is the primal word of all people! Not to mention the word mother again? Help – we have completely different concerns in our country!”
The folk music stars Marianne and Michael Hartl have two sons
“Manta Manta 2” star Tina Ruland (56, one son)
“Whenever you think it can’t get any more absurd than that, someone puts it on top. The term ‘mother’ is so much more than just giving birth. For me it means, among other things, showering someone with infinite love and taking responsibility. However, this is not tied to the mere giving birth, for example the adoptive mother naturally feels that way too. In turn, isn’t she actually discriminated against, because she doesn’t give birth, but she is the mother?”
“Manta Manta 2” star Tina Ruland finds the discussion absurd
Mama blogger and actress Laila Maria Witt (40, “Verbotene Liebe”, mother of four)
“Being a mother means much more than just giving birth. In my many years of work as an author and family youtuber, I have never met anyone who felt discriminated against by the term mother or father, which is why I do not understand this debate. For my part, I’m proud to be a mother of four, and artificial terminology won’t change that.”
Author Johanna Völkel (44, two children)
“Being a mother is so much more than the fact that I gave birth to the child. Dropping the word mother is completely misogynistic! ‘Birthing person’ automatically reduces me and mothers to our purely biological function. You are a mother whether you are non-binary or how you feel. You can always be a mother. But to delete the word now and to see women only as a person giving birth? Then we feel discriminated.”
Johanna Völkel with her husband, The BossHoss musician Alec Völkel (51)
Actress and daycare center operator Anne-Sophie Briest (49, two children)
“That raises the following question for me: Statistically, how many people give birth to a child in German-speaking countries who are NOT clearly ascribed to the female gender? In my opinion, unnecessary in this case. There are certainly more important gender issues than this. I am proud to be a mother because it is a lifetime achievement to be recognised.”
Anne-Sophie Briest with daughter Faye Montana (19)
