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This week, we’re celebrating the 25th edition of The First Word.

When I think back on these past six months, what stands out most to me isn’t the policies we’ve broken down or the headlines we’ve explained — it’s the stories you’ve shared with us. The mom who wrote from her car on her lunch break, just needing to cry and know someone was listening. The parents who asked how to write their first letter to Congress. The mom who told us about leaking through her shirt on her first day back at work, still healing, still exhausted, but showing up anyway. And the ones who write in with joy, sharing victories in their classrooms, their communities, their statehouses.

These stories remind me, week after week, why we do this together. They remind me that even when motherhood feels lonely, we’re never alone.

But here’s the truth: producing The First Word takes real work and resources. It takes a team to dream up the content, edit every line (yes, even those Oxford commas), and make sure your voices are lifted up to the national stage. We don’t have advertisers backing us. We just have each other.

That’s why today, we’re setting a goal: to raise $10,000 to Fund the First Word. If just 500 of us gave $20, we’d get there today. Every single dollar goes toward making sure these stories — and this movement — keep growing.

So if The First Word has given you language for your story, made you feel seen, or simply helped you exhale and think, “yes, someone gets it,” I’m asking you to chip in to keep it going. Think of it like your favorite magazine or streaming service…except this one is fueled only by people like you, who believe moms deserve better.

FUND THE FIRST WORD

Now, let’s get into this milestone edition of The First Word…

Do You Know Your Mom Rights?

Earlier this month, Elisa Toro Franky, a Moms First community member from New York, shared a story that feels all too familiar. She was trying to use an elevator with her child in a stroller, when the building manager told her she had to fold the stroller and carry her baby instead. Look, that’s not just annoying. It’s frankly unsafe.

And it’s a reminder that in situations like this, moms have rights — regardless of whether society acts like it. If you’re pregnant, pumping, or just trying to be a mom in public, there are laws on the books to protect you. So today let’s focus on the rights we already have as moms, as well as where there are gaps in protections that need to be closed.

If You’re At Work While Pregnant… 

  • The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act took effect in 2023 and guarantees you a whole host of “reasonable” accommodations. All employers with at least 15 employees must provide basics to pregnant workers — like having a place to sit, being able to take more frequent bathroom breaks, avoiding lifting heavy objects, and getting time off for health appointments.

    It’s kind of astounding that it took until two years ago for Congress to pass these extremely low-bar protections, but hey, I’m glad they finally got around to it.
  • The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, which amended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, also explicitly bans discrimination on the basis of pregnancy. That means employers can’t legally treat workers or applicants differently because they’re pregnant. 

If You’re Pumping and/or Breastfeeding…

  • Familiarize yourself with the PUMP Act (aka, the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act), which expands prior labor laws to require employers to provide break time and a private, non-bathroom space to pump at work.
  • Know that all 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands have laws that specifically allow women to breastfeed in any public or private location.

If You Recently Had a Child…

Don’t have state paid leave? Email your lawmakers to demand it.

  • The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) gives some workers up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave in the year after the child is born. But here’s the catch: it’s unpaid, and nearly half of working people aren’t eligible. That’s why we’re still fighting for paid leave for every family.

If You’re Just Being a Mom in Public…

  • Accessibility isn’t just about wheelchairs — it’s about dignity and safety for every caregiver. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires public spaces like streets, sidewalks, and transportation systems to be accessible.

While the ADA doesn’t specifically cover strollers, parents often benefit from those standards (like elevators and ramps). And when a stroller is used as a mobility aid for a child or parent with a disability, ADA protections apply directly.

  • Enforcement, however, is patchy. Stroller access, safe seating, and parent-friendly policies should be the norm. We’re not there yet. (Just ask the mom trying to use the elevator.) You can file an ADA-related complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division. Highlighting these barriers for moms helps create a record that can push policy forward.

If you take away anything from this message, it’s that moms have rights but it’s a patchwork system with serious gaps, and the rights we have aren’t clearly or consistently enforced. 

Together, we must advocate for ourselves and our fellow parents out in the real world. Let’s speak up and demand that every mom gets the dignity, support, and protection we deserve.

Put Your Moms Rights Into Action

  • Want to know more about what paid leave you’re entitled to in your state? PaidLeave.AI is here to help. And if your state doesn’t provide paid leave, advocate for it through this simple form.
  • This week, Congress reintroduced the FAMILY Act, bipartisan legislation which would finally guarantee national paid leave: 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave for all workers, regardless of which state they live in. Use this form from National Partnership for Women & Families to email your lawmakers and tell them to support the FAMILY Act.  
  • Personal, first-hand stories are the single biggest drivers of change. So if you’ve ever felt your Mom Rights being challenged or disrespected at work or in public, we need to hear from you. Share your story with Moms First today — and help shine a light on the needs of moms everywhere.

SHARE YOUR STORY

Child Care First NYC


Last week, we launched our Child Care First NYC campaign to make sure the next NYC mayor puts child care at the top of their agenda in the first 100 days.  If you’re a New Yorker, add your name to our petition to demand bold action (and then forward it along to a friend!). 

SIGN THE PETITION

This Friday, September 19, I’ll be joining S.E. Cupp on Battleground NYC: The Fight for Your Vote! Stream it at 7:00 PM ET on FOX 5 NY’s YouTube channel or the FOX Local app, or catch it on FOX 5 New York at 11:00 PM ET.

They’ll break down why child care is the defining affordability issue in the NYC mayoral race—and how Moms First is pushing every candidate to commit to action in their first 100 days. Don’t miss it!

Moms deserve more than gratitude — we deserve rights that are respected and enforced. Let’s keep raising our voices until every mom can move through work and life with the dignity and protection she has always earned.

In this with you,
Reshma Saujani