A segment on last night’s PBS Newshour should be required watching (“Almost every country in the world offers more generous maternity leave than the U.S.“). That link will take you to the video of the segment and a transcript.
According to the United Nations, we and Papua New Guinea are the only countries in the world that do not provide any paid time off for new mothers.
And only since 1993 have we had the Family and Medical Leave act, or FMLA, which grants up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for full-time workers at firms with 50 or more employees. But the law fails to cover fully 40 percent of American workers, like part-timer Kimberly Lewis.
And then there are mothers who take their maternity leave, and then are fired by their employers when they try to return to work. Maternity leave is, it seems, a right that is not self-enforcing.
The program raises the issue of who would shoulder the cost of a broadly available family leave. But it fails to look at the longer term benefits to the society, and the economy, as a whole that likely more than balance the cost.
This is certainly an issue that needs to be near the top of the public agenda.
Unless we’re happy at the bottom of the international pack, the U.S. and Paua New Guinea, going it alone on our anti-family agenda.
Discover more from i L i n d
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Makes yuh proud, don’t it, Clem!
Ian
scoop
Yest.. a 442nd veteran was awarded the French metal of honor but no ckversge
http://westhawaiitoday.com/community-bulletin/they-will-never-forget-france-honors-big-island-nisei-soldiers
West Hawaii Today
byager@westhawaiitoday.com
If World War II hadn’t broken out, Iwao Yonemitsu might have become a teacher.
Instead, as blood spilled in the forests and fields of Europe, the Naalehu resident found himself the leader of a 60 mm mortar squad in the longest 10 months he’s ever spent.
“No one can say you learn not to be afraid,” he said.
Before joining the now legendary 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Yonemitsu, 91, was at the University of Hawaii studying to be a teacher. When he returned to the Big Island after the war, he took up work at the Ka‘u Sugar Co. The war had irrevocably shifted the course of his life.
“No question,” he said. “But I have no regrets the way it turned out.”
On Wednesday, Yonemitsu was one of five Big Island veterans of the 442nd RCT and the 100th Infantry Battalion to be honored for their fortitude and steadfast courage in facing the overwhelming and defining experience that is war.
As the men received the French Legion of Honor at the West Hawaii Veterans Cemetery, Pauline Carmona, the French consul general in San Francisco, said her people owe the nisei soldiers a debt of eternal gratitude for the role they played in liberating France from Nazi occupation.
“The people of France have not forgotten,” she said to the soldiers and about 100 attendees. “Their children and grandchildren have not forgotten. They will never forget.”
The awards are the latest in numerous accolades over the years for the unit comprised almost entirely of Japanese-Americans, who served valiantly in Europe even as family members were interned at home. Ceremonies to honor about 45 other nisei soldiers will be held on Maui and Oahu today and tomorrow.
The men of the 442nd and 100th Battalion overcame a 314 percent casualty rate, and were the most decorated for their size and the duration of time they fought, said retired Army Col. Debra Lewis of Hilo, in a keynote address.
…
http://www.kitv.com/news/442nd-veterans-presented-with-frances-legion-of-honor/30893866
KITV
442nd veterans presented with France’s Legion of Honor
UPDATED 11:16 PM HST Jan 23, 2015
HONOLULU –
France showed its appreciation on Friday to 34 veterans who fought in what’s considered the most vicious battle of World War II.
“We were young, but even when times were tough we knew we had to prove ourselves,” said 442nd veteran Frank Nomura. “We just did our best to serve our country.”
For the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry Regiment their service and their sacrifice was so great, even today, their stories silenced a room filled with dignitaries and heroes.
“We witnesses atrocities that no one should experience. It was gruesome and horrifying. Emotionally we were wounded for life,” said veteran Harold Kudo.
“I know it still brings up painful memories today,” said Adm. Harry B. Harris, Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. “I’ve heard that on windy gusty nights at home amid the rustling of the trees, some can still hear the echoes of the dying comrades calling for their mothers. Okaasan. Okaasan.”
“My father never talked about the activities of war,” said Gov. David Ige.
Gov. Ige’s father served during World War II. Deep in the mountains of France, the conditions were dismal, dark – like the skies were on fire.
The dwindling unit of mostly Japanese-Americans held the line, broke the Nazis, and rescued their comrades – often, at a devastating cost.
“On the first day of combat, we had about 13 casualties. Right on the first day,” said veteran Rikio Tsuda.
“My father had shrapnel in his back, that they decided to leave rather than risk removing it and he carried that with him for the rest of his life,” said Gov. Ige.
“We’re still here and the ones that really did something are already gone. They gave their life for their country,” said veteran Masayuki Higa.
Between the pomp and circumstance — the honors. Each veteran pinned with France’s Legion of Honor — the country’s highest decoration.
…