Don't demonize single mothers

George Pyle is wrong. The problem with Chris Powell's comments is that they are wrong about single moms!

As a single mom with two master's degrees, a profession, a home on the East Bench and a subscription to the newspaper, I'm sick and tired of single-mom-bashing as the national pastime. Single moms are supposedly responsible for the decline of the newspaper, the decline of the family, the crime rate, and the downfall of Western civilization.

The vast majority of us did not plan to be single moms. The number of us who "have several children by different fathers, survive on welfare stipends, can hardly read or speak English, move every few months to cheat their landlords," etc. is incredibly small. This stereotype of what a single mom is and how this demographic is so large as to drive our society into the dirt is appalling.

The only thing this misogynistic stereotype accomplishes is to let irresponsible dads off the hook and throw the women raising future generations into the role of bogeymen. If western civilization is truly in decline, the reason is that we are demonizing the very people trying to build its future.

Shelly Poole

Salt Lake City