Bad Mothers: The Politics of Blame in Twentieth-Century AmericaIn the past quarter century, bad mothers have moved noticeably toward center stage in American culture. While Susan Smith will eventually fade from the tabloids, the monster mother that she represents has a storied and long history. Mothers have been blamed for a host of problems, from autism in children (due to chilly refrigerator mothers), to homosexuality (attributed to smothering moms), to welfare dependency and crime (caused by black matriarchs