Naomi Schaefer Riley, a writer for the New York Post, has caused outrage by attacking stars including Beyoncé, Adele and Zoey Deschanel for "festishising" motherhood.
In a piece titled, Having a baby isn’t a miracle and doesn’t make you a goddess, Naomi Schaefer Riley argued that Beyonce's recent performance at the Grammy's and Adele's award acceptance speech were both "self-indulgent."
Beyoncé, who is currently heavily pregnant with twins, hit headlines with a show-stopping nine minute performance, which saw her dressed as a sun goddess - full bump on show.
However, while fans and critics alike were totally wowed by Beyoncé's performance, Schaefer Riley clearly wasn't, and wrote: "Beyoncé has never known when to draw the line between what she should share with her husband and what she should share with an audience." Ouch.
Beyoncé wasn't the only star to come under fire though. On the same night, Adele spoke about motherhood during her Grammy's acceptance speech for Best Album, saying: “In my pregnancy and through becoming a mother, I lost a lot of myself. And I’ve struggled, and I still do struggle being a mom. It’s really hard. But tonight, winning this kind of feels full-circle and like a bit of me has come back to myself.”
Talking about Adele's speech, Schaefer Riley wrote: "The idea that a woman who is known to millions by only her first name has “lost” herself by becoming a mother seems a little far-fetched."
Schaefer Riley goes on to explain that she believes Beyoncé's Grammy's performance (and presumably the goddess-themed photoshoot with which she announced her second pregnancy) and Adele's speeach are part of a bigger problem, explaining: "Why is it that in an era when women are constantly insisting that they should not be defined by their traditional, biological roles, we have fetishized motherhood to such an extent?"
While Schaefer Riley acknowledges that for some mothers motherhood is a geniune struggle, she has no time for stars being overly dramatic, and also takes aim at Kerry Washington, who after giving birth in 2015, said, “My body is the site of a miracle now," and Zooey Deschanel who told Redbook, “I think it’s a huge accomplishment to have a child.”
Shaefer Riley concludes by saying: "Millions of women have been giving birth for millions of years," and while she doesn't believe simply having a child is an accomplishment, she argues, "It’s an accomplishment to raise a child well."
Do you agree with Naomi Schaefer Riley that stars like Beyoncé and Adele are fetishising motherhood and should just get on with it, or do you think that pregnancy, birth and motherhood are a miracle which should be celebrated? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter
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