One in three U.S. families cannot afford an adequate supply of diapers for their babies. It’s National Diaper Need Awareness Week right now (September 21–27, 2020), and you just learned (if you didn’t know already) that diaper need is a widespread problem. The National Diaper Bank Network (NDBN) works to increase awareness—in hopes, of course, that this leads to action.
Last week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell released a proposal mislabeled as a COVID-19 relief bill. I say “mislabeled” because the $1 trillion proposal includes little that will relieve people harmed by the pandemic. Full disclosure: I am not an economist.
It’s not yet clear if the forms of economic activity resuming in most states will quickly reduce the nation’s high unemployment rates, but one thing is certain: it won’t happen without diapers. Most child care operators will not accept a baby or toddler unless parents supply disposable diapers. This has always been a barrier to employment for families in poverty. Pre-COVID-19, one in five U.