The American Compass Podcast
Our mission is to restore an economic consensus that emphasizes the importance of family, community, and industry to the nation’s liberty and prosperity. The American Compass Podcast features conversations on a wide variety of policy issues aimed at helping policymakers and the broader public navigate the most pressing issues that will define the future of the conservative movement in America.
The American Compass Podcast
Neither Girlboss, Nor Tradwife with Emma Waters
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
“Girlboss” feminism promised a world in which women could seamlessly balance ambitious careers and flourishing family lives. But in practice, that vision has proven far more brittle, often demanding total commitment to work while sidelining marriage, children, and the realities of time and tradeoffs. While many women are moving away from that all-consuming focus on a career, they're looking for something much different than what the Instagram tradwife has to offer.
Emma Waters, senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation and author of the recently released Lead Like Jael, joins Oren to explore what comes next. They discuss the backlash against career-first feminism, the rise and limits of “tradwife” culture, and the emerging case for a more flexible, family-centered approach to work. They also examine the class divide underlying these debates, the role of technology in reshaping women’s choices, and how policymakers and employers could better support a model that allows women to prioritize both work and family without forcing an all-or-nothing choice.
Further Reading:
- Buy Lead Like Jael by Emma Waters
- “Pursuing the Reunification of Home and Work” Erika Bachiochi, American Compass
- “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All” by Anne-Marie Slaughter, The Atlantic