Have started this after a recent thread diverted to the topic.
I think carers are a feminist issue as we are in the main female (certainly not exclusively) and it is a devalued role. We work ahrd and receive nothing but dismissal- threads where people say we should be working and are quite able, portrayed as villains for state dependency for our £54 a week when the last set of figures I accessed suggested that includingc are palns we saved the state £2000 a week.
How do we change our status though? It is excpected that we do this: the only way we could get help would be to abandon our children, even threatening does not really work any more as examples on ehre state. We can be (I am) vioently abused by the cared for, go days without sleep, a week without a bath yet we are seen as on a par with able bodied single people who choose not towork and contribute zero.
My feeling is that to increase awarenes of our value we need to ephasise the fact that we worek for our moiney: it is earned, not a hand out. At teh moment we are taxed on it, yet it is treated as repalcing income support- I woudl like to see it treated as worked hours, and therefore women caring with no partner would be entitled to tax credits as if they were doing any otehr job.
I woudl like to see employment help for carers, at the moment tehre is none, we are not on anyones ists; I woudl dealry love to recommence my career yet cannot access chidlare (ds1 is aggressive biut does not meet anybodies croteria- ds3 is simply ignopred, I ahve two with autism). I believe as a human I have a right tyo be able to access paid work.
I think carers should beenttiled to free courses at collges to enable them to find work that can fit aorund their needs. And that respite shoud be a nortm not soemthing wehave to battle for eyars for endlessly ( I finally ahd some this summer and my chidl was left unattended, injured himself and then someone else so am baclk to sqaure one. I ahven't ahd a night out with friends barring one awards ceremony in three years)
i feelt aht the plight of owmoen is magnified immensely in how we treat our carers becuase we are unable to fight- we would not give up our chidlren therefore we have no power and society knows this.
Which certainly feels like blackmail.