More Than $100,000 Raised for Shanesha Taylor, Homeless Mom Accused of Leaving Kids in Car During Job Interview

Apr 21

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In 2014 when we would think that there are more resources to help single, working or want to work moms, there are less. It’s good that Taylor is getting support. Hope that she keeps her chin up.

Posted on 04/21/2014, in Uncategorized and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink. 13 Comments.

  1. Rachael | 04/21/2014 at 8:03 am

    Having been both a single mom in a city where I had no friends or family as well as having lived in Arizona for 35 years, I’m afraid anything I say here will not be popular. I do agree however, that it is a huge problem for the poor and especially single mothers. But again, I will say nothing more with regard to this, as I can see, it will not be popular.

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    • Xena | 04/21/2014 at 10:29 am

      Rachael,
      You’re family. Let it rip.

      Personally, I would not be confident that leaving children in a vehicle is safe when it’s hot outside, and I wouldn’t take a chance of leaving them in the car alone with the engine running if it’s cold outside. Oh heck — I don’t think I could leave kids alone in a vehicle regardless of the weather. However, I will have to be in Taylor’s shoes to understand why she did that.

      I remember once back in the mid-seventies that a woman came to my place of work to apply for a job and she had her daughter of about 4 years old with her. The HR girl made a joke that people were applying for work at a young age. I played with the child in the reception room while her mom went back for an interview.

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      • Rachael | 04/21/2014 at 2:36 pm

        Okay – well, I have total sympathy for her situation. I have NO sympathy for her solution. Aside from concerns about someone taking the child, I would be MUCH more concerned with the safety of being in the car itself. A car can turn deadly for even on a winter day with an outside temperature of only 60 degrees if the sun is out. A closed-car interior can reach 100 degrees on a sunny day. On a mild day at 73 degrees outside, an SUV can heat up to 100 degrees in ten minutes and to 120 degrees in just 30 minutes. At 90 degrees outside, the interior of a vehicle can heat up to 160 degrees within several minutes.

        I can understand not having any alternative and not wanting to miss a job opportunity – but either wait until you can make some arrangements or out of desperation, like you mentioned Xena, take the child with. I know they advise not to take a child, but NO ONE would advise leaving a child unattended in a car. Who knows, you might get the job because they see how badly you need it or that you aren’t willing to sacrifice the life of your child for an interview. If it is a place that is family oriented, they might like that – But even if they don’t, you haven’t endangered the life of your child.

        Sure nothing happened and the child is okay – but this was not a “mistake.” I understand she is desperate and felt she had no choice, but putting her child’s life in jeopardy, IMO, is NOT an option and NOT a “mistake.” It is no different than if you left your child in an abandoned refrigerator or something or on a railroad track.

        Of course, putting the mom in jail is not the answer either. We need to get serious. If we are trying to get people working, we need resources. Maybe DHSH should have daycare facilities for moms going on interviews or HR departments have something for people who are coming to interview for their company.

        Again, I have complete sympathy for her situation, but none for how she handled it.

        Our country is really messed up though.

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        • roderick2012 | 04/24/2014 at 1:33 pm

          “I can understand not having any alternative and not wanting to miss a job opportunity – but either wait until you can make some arrangements or out of desperation, like you mentioned Xena, take the child with. I know they advise not to take a child, but NO ONE would advise leaving a child unattended in a car. Who knows, you might get the job because they see how badly you need it or that you aren’t willing to sacrifice the life of your child for an interview. If it is a place that is family oriented, they might like that – But even if they don’t, you haven’t endangered the life of your child.”

          If she had taken the children with her for the interview she may as well have cancelled the interview because the first thing that would have popped into the interviewer’s head was—if this lady can’t find child care for an interview that last maybe an hour how will she find child care if I hire her.

          Remember this is Arizona–the state that passed the law where an employer has the right to determine what benefits you receive from your health plan based upon HIS moral viewpoints.

          Ms. Taylor was in a damned if you do and damned if you don’t situtation.

          I hope she uses the donations to find a good lawyer who can get her a sentence without jail time and hopefully she will have enough left to find a decent place to live and good childcare so she can go on interviews and not have to worry about her children.

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  2. Yahtzee | 04/21/2014 at 8:35 am

    There is NO excuse or justification for leaving a 2-year-old with a 6-month old baby ALONE in a car! ( IF Shanesha Taylor, DID do this.) Her two children could have been kidnapped or come to some terrible harm.

    We have a major problem in our country where there are not enough public services to provide child care for single parents seeking jobs and holding down jobs. This needs to change.

    If Shanesha Taylor is convicted, I would like to see her sentence be to give community service in the form of talking to single parents on the subject of child safety as she tells them of the terrible mistake she made and what could have been the fate of her children.
    (She should not receive jail time.)

    Shanesha Taylor is a very fortunate mother that no harm came to her children.

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  3. Yahtzee | 04/21/2014 at 9:09 am

    We need to push for change in America so that Blacks and other minorities have more job opportunities offered to them plus human services such as health care, childcare, etc.

    Here is one way some are trying to change things:

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  4. Yahtzee | 04/21/2014 at 9:16 am

    “Working Single Mothers Are Disproportionately Likely to Be Poor”
    FEBRUARY 19, 2014

    http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2014/02/19/3305931/income-single-mothers/

    “Working single mothers are disproportionately likely to be poor, and their ranks are growing, according to a new report from the Working Poor Families Project.
    While families headed by a working mom make up less than a quarter of all working families, they make up nearly 40 percent of all low-income ones. And their numbers are on the rise: the share of working families headed by a woman that are low income increased from 54 percent in 2007 to 58 percent in 2012. The share is even higher among African Americans, as 65 percent are low income.

    “The fact that more and more families headed by a working single mother fall into poverty is troubling, because more and more mothers are the primary source of income. A report last year found that a record number of families rely on women’s earnings, nearly two-thirds of whom are single moms.

    “It’s not that these mothers aren’t working hard. More than half of low-income single mothers are working full time, according to the Working Poor Families Project report. But they are very likely to work in jobs that don’t pay well and that don’t offer many benefits. Almost half are employed in just 16 occupations, many of which are in the retail and service industries. The biggest percentage are home health aides, where the mean wage is $10 an hour, or about $21,000 a year. Yet the report notes that increasing their access to non-traditional jobs, such as in manufacturing or transportation, “could increase their earnings by at least 30 percent.”
    ”
    Other policies that could help increase their financial stability would address the lack of benefits in these jobs, such as access to health care and paid time off for sickness or a new child. The U.S. is the only advanced country that doesn’t guarantee that workers can take time off if they or their loved ones fall ill, leaving 40 percent of private sector workers without access to leave, including a full 80 percent of low-income workers. The country is even more lonely when it comes to paid maternity leave, as it is just one of three countries out of 178 that doesn’t guarantee all mothers can take paid time off for the arrival of a new child. Some cities and states have instituted these policies — there are eight that guarantee paid sick leave and three that guarantee paid family leave — but nothing at the federal level.

    “Another challenge facing these mothers is that they are more likely than wealthier working women to lack educational credentials that can help them get a better job. About 18 percent of women in female-headed, low-income families don’t have a high school diploma, compared to just 5 percent of their higher-income peers. On the other hand, 77 of higher-income working moms had some education beyond high school, compared to 51 percent of low-income moms. The report notes that even for those who have a high school diploma and qualify for post-secondary education, “access can be limited due to a number of factors such as tuition costs, transportation issues and class schedules that conflict with standard working hours.”

    “A lack of affordable child care can also be a huge barrier to college (as well as to getting to work). The cost of child care continues to rise and is often more than what families typically spend on rent or food. Meanwhile, state aid to help families afford these costs has been on the decline.”

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  5. mindyme62 | 04/21/2014 at 11:54 am

    I am amazed and in awe at the compassion shown to this woman. I know folks who donated. I read in the story where the children are in the care of the State, not with family. She needs to have her children back in her care and be provided with resources to properly support and care for her babies..

    And yes Xena, as a sometimes licensed in home child care provider in Florida, I know that one may only care for the children of one family without a license. Of course it’s up to the State to prove the children in your home aren’t your family or that you’re being paid for them.. …. … ….

    She made a mistake. Who hasn’t?

    I read of another story recently where a Mother was high and drove for 2 miles with her 2 month old baby on top of her car until the car seat fell off and hit the road. THAT mother wasn’t arrested or charged with anything.

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  6. roderick2012 | 04/21/2014 at 11:56 am

    Road-raging Texas driver shoots 3-year-old girl on Easter

    Police in South Houston are searching for a suspect who was accused of shooting a 3-year-old girl in what was thought to be a case of drunken road rage.

    According to KTRK, 3-year-old Leah and three other members of her family were driving in South Houston on Sunday when a nearby car began swerving erratically.

    “They just thought they would pass it up on suspicion that this may have been a drunk driver,” South Houston Police Chief Herbert Gilbert explained.

    http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/04/21/road-raging-texas-driver-shoots-3-year-old-girl-on-easter/

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