The Topline
- Canada’s fertility rate is at a record low , and experts are investigating why less people are choosing to have children
- Young people on social media are debating whether or not having kids is worth the financial and lifestyle sacrifices that parenthood entails
- Those who are choosing to have children are more likely to have only one
Baby, baby, baby oh
All of human history considered, we haven’t been able to “decide” whether or not we wanted to have kids for very long. Birth control was decriminalized in 1969 and still stigmatized long after. Abortion access is limited and some still fight to force pregnant people to have babies whether they want to or not (click on that last link at your own risk… trigger warning: stupidity).
We have the right to choose, but that doesn’t make the decision any easier, especially when your mom’s hinting that she won’t live to be a grandma while Chappell Roan insists that every parent she knows is in hell .
There’s absolutely no arguing that these times are easy financially, environmentally and socially – but that doesn’t mean we should give up on reproducing. Parents may not be happier than their childless counterparts, but they do have a greater sense of meaning in their lives.
And while #childfree lifestyles are trending online, so is #endinggenerationaltrauma: Millennial and Gen Z parents who are dedicated to raising kids in a more compassionate, understanding way than their own parents did. Trends like “finish the sentence” prove that some young parents are healing themselves and bringing up considerate kids at the same time.
And while Boomers may make the argument that the childless will have no one to care for them in their old age (which, to be clear, is not a great reason to have kids), it is true that there’s a future to think about.
Gen Alpha is shaping up to be the most environmentally conscious yet , and younger generations are more involved than ever when it comes to fighting for their own rights and the rights of others. That’s not to say you should have kids just so they can save the world… but it’s a scenario just as worth considering as a Wall-E-esque garbage planet .
Also, it’s very fun to dress babies up for Halloween . Get to it now and you’ll have a 2 month old by next Oct 31.
Baby, baby, baby no
A bingo sheet that will work with any new parent in your life: Lack of sleep. Cost of diapers. Never going out anymore. Cost of daycare. Everything is sticky all the time. Cost of organized sports. Personal vendetta against Cocomelon (and for good reason).
Did you win yet? Either way, it seems pretty clear who the loser is. Just kidding. Kinda.
The childfree by choice community is growing (gals, follow the girl with the list at your own risk), and Canada’s fertility rates are shrinking . Other Canadian birthrate lows are the Great Depression and Second World War, proving that in bad times, we realize that having babies won’t solve all our problems – except for that mini baby boom during COVID, but there wasn’t much else to do besides watch Tiger King and, y’know, procreate.
And times are bad. Money-wise, the economy sucks and the cost of living has skyrocketed higher than Justin Trudeau’s girlfriend . A lot of young people of childbearing age are worried about making rent for their studio apartment and can’t imagine supporting another human.
Then, there’s the “stats” on happiness and kids – don’t let your in-laws fool you, having children isn’t going to increase your quality of life unless you happen to be a man . Finally, a win for men!
When questioned about a world without children, some ask, “What world?” Natural disasters are on the rise , another bad sign for the economy and our breathable air, and even longtime advocates like David Suzuki say the fight against climate change is already lost (yikes). It feels a tad irresponsible to create life that’s destined for a polar bear-less, emissions-saturated hellscape.
All big ideas aside, you don’t need a financial or environmental crisis to defend a decision to not have kids. Some people just don’t want to , and that’s really nothing to cry about.
