Maternal Thinking in U.S. Contexts of Gun Violence and Police Brutality

ABSTRACT:This article retrieves Sara Ruddick's Maternal Thinking as a resource for analyzing contemporary activism by mothers advocating for gun control and police reform. Concerns about ethnocentrism and gender essentialism have discouraged engagement with maternal thinking. However, self-identified "moms" continue an historical pattern of protecting their children through public advocacy on social issues. Given the role that maternal identity plays in political activism, feminist ethics must continue to develop robust theoretical resources for analysis and critique. Sara Ruddick's Maternal Thinking should remain part of that repertoire.