Commentary | Nashville ‘s Connie Britton is a single mom (a status not often revered or even respected in American society), and, despite the social and societal ramifications, the star willingly stepped into motherhood as a swingle without any intent of adding a partner to the mix — at least, not yet.
So, is Connie Britton brave or stupid? Motherhood is one of the few areas of life where even the wealthy and well-connected can’t be shielded from all the inherent pitfalls — postpartum depression, breastfeeding issues, baby illness, and fatigue are problems that regardless of your access to help — that affect all parents.
Sure, nannies are great if you have them, but single motherhood is one of the most uniquely (to be blunt) hated on archetypes of our society — and Connie Britton picked it on purpose. As a single mom myself — only realizing the magnitude of judgment and assumptions that are baked into the cake after my husband peaced out unceremoniously — it is so cool to see a star like Britton present what we live as a choice, not a second-rate circumstance forever thrust upon the unwilling.
Connie is garnering rave reviews for her country stylings in the ABC show after her season one turn in American Horror Story , and, as her career takes off, she talks about the adoption that changed her life and apparently occurred just as she hit it big.
Britton adopted son Yoby a year ago in Ethiopia, and she tells the hosts on The View that a compounded loss and some time spent working on a documentary cemented her decision:
“I lost both of my parents within three years of each other and I kind of thought, ‘What am I waiting for?’ … The man will come and if I want to have my own kids I can do that, but I [knew] this was something I [wanted] to do … I was going to do a documentary about Ethiopian orphans and spent a lot of time in orphanages there,” she shares.
Connie adds:
“It was something I knew I always wanted to do — adopt from there.”
The adoption of Yoby last year was, she says, a “wonderful and life-changing experience,” but the relationship goes both ways. The Nashville chanteuse says that, without Yoby, she may have passed on the role that has garnered her so many accolades:
“It is really true, I sing to him all the time. Poor thing practically never hears me just say a straight word. I sing everything like we’re in a musical. I guess he likes it. He wasn’t able to defend himself because he couldn’t speak until just recently … When [ Nashville ] came up, I thought to myself, ‘You know, I sound pretty good singing with Yoby. I’m sure I can pull it off.’ Not smart!”
Connie Britton’s choice to become a mom without a partner is indeed somewhat transgressive as well as cool considering the number of kids worldwide that need loving homes. But it also does a second service, and that is to single parents who only have their very real lives framed as a consequence of bad decisions at worst or a temporary unpleasant situation at best — it’s so rare anyone publicly admits that parenting on your own is tough but rewarding and not the end of the world.
