While not everyone wants to admit to it and doesn't see it as a big deal, there's still a huge issue in 2023 of women being unfairly expected to complete far more home care and family care tasks than their male partners.
Whether or not a woman has a job, or has a job that's outside of the home, she will often be expected to do all of the home care and emotional labor tasks that keep her home running, from cleaning to meal planning to grocery shopping and cooking and more.
Instagram influencer mom Maria Roberts recently shed light on this with a video that was meant to be funny but which hit far too close to home for a lot of viewers.
In the video, the family of four is on a flight to Disney, and the family is seated with both children and Roberts in one row, while Roberts' husband is seated by himself across the aisle.
Set to chaotic music, Roberts shows what she looked like on the flight, with her unpacking items, making sure her kids are settled in, taking care of everything they need, and even climbing over her kids, in and out of her seat to put things away.
Meanwhile, the end of the video switches to calming music, showing Roberts' husband with earbuds in while he calmly zones out and watches a movie.
You can watch the video here:
Roberts also shared videos before this one that indicated that the family was going to Disney for a week and that she had done all of the home preparation, including packing for the trip and daily budgeting.
So not only was it alluded to that she did most of the labor on the flight, but she also did most of the work that prepared the family for going on their trip.
Fellow Instagrammers were quick to share their opinions about the video. Whether it was meant to be a joke or an actual depiction of Roberts' life, viewers were concerned.
Some tried to be helpful and shared their tips for smooth travel with kids.
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
But most felt there were issues here with emotional labor and unequal distribution of work.
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagram
@mariaroberts/Instagra
Whether the video was a joke or not, this depiction captures what many women are still faced with today—sexism, too much emotional labor, and an unequal distribution of responsibilities in the home.
Many women have to balance work with these responsibilities, and even though many women are now working from home, especially since the pandemic, the expectation to complete all of the home tasks seems unreasonable, even if they spend more time in proximity to it.
It's time to do better, dads.
@jaketapoer/Bluesky
@BillAckman/Twitter