Since women of the African diaspora arrived in the United States, they have long been saving America. Despite enduring unimaginable physical abuse – being beaten and raped – and the wrenching disruption of their families, they continued to work in unfailing servitude for the benefit of their White slave masters’ families and homes as America was being built. And, even in contemporary times, it is often Black women who work silently behind the scenes, caring for others and building in ways that are invisible to most. For example, in Alabama, countless Black women care for children in child-care programs in rural parts of the state that go unnoticed and are often grossly under-supported. These women provide services to thousands of children each year, operating under a reimbursement system that pays inadequately for their services. At the same time, they feel pushed out by well-intended efforts like Universal Pre-Kindergarten that, ultimately, create an unequal playing field for what are predominantly Black women caregivers. In true-to-form fashion, Black women began caring for children in some of the most impoverished parts of the state decades ago, long before the industrialization of preschool was on the rise. When attention is not paid to the potential impact such programs have on community and home-based child-care programs, there are looming consequences that lead to rural child-care center closings or tuition increases that create hardships for working families already living below the poverty line. Yet, historically, these Black women have been among the largest providers of child care for the state.
