
It’s ironic that the U.S. federal budget was signed on the cusp of World Population Day, which is meant to raise awareness of population growth and reproductive rights. The budget reflects Trump administration priorities, including its aggressive pronatalism agenda, which attempts to cajole or coerce women into having more babies. It’s catnip for the GOP conservative base, and as a result, Trump’s symbolic $1,000 “baby bonus” got to remain in the budget bill, while other social spending like Medicaid and food assistance got cut.
But it’s not just conservatives anymore. Now, many progressives are also panicking over an alleged fertility “crisis.”
Hundreds of millions of girls and women worldwide are still unable to control basic aspects of their lives. Dangling pronatalist incentives like a “baby bonus” in front of them, encouraging them to pawn their reproductive choice for favors from pronatalist governments, is grossly misguided.