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Mindr: Lectures for moms; babies welcome

Published  June 19, 2017 9:03pm EDT
Business
FOX 5 New York

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - These are adult events where crying babies are welcome. This is Mindr a series of lectures, workshops, and events that some have called the "TED Talks" of the parenting world.

"We're really reopening the intellectual world to women who would otherwise be excluded," said Sarah Lux-Lee, Mindr's founder.

Lux-Lee came up with the idea for Mindr after her daughter Ella was born last year, and she couldn't find any intellectually-stimulating events where Ella was welcome.

"All the programming out there for new moms is really for babies, music class or a story time and there was nowhere for new mothers to come together as more than just mothers and continue building their careers and their networks and their friendship circles," Lux-Lee said.

Past Mindr lectures have covered everything from presidential politics to human rights. The most recent event, held at Blue Stone Lane Coffee shop in the West Village, was about the future of feminism and featured Daily News columnist Alexis Grenell.

"For me, this is an important event," said Grenell. "I think there's this undervaluation of mothers as somehow being full-time parents without other interests outside their children, and women are this huge resource for civic engagement and politics and can't really be counted out."

Events are held monthly and many moms and their babies have become regulars.

"It's really, really hard in the city with childcare, and it takes an hour to great anywhere, so being able to take a squirmy 1-year-old and also do adult things is really nice," said Jade Sottack of Brooklyn.

"I'm finding society as a whole can really learn something from these specific events that children are a part of life and mothers are human beings and that sort of duality is OK," said mom Mathilde Dratwa, attending Monday's event.

Mindr event tickets start at $15. Future events will focus on climate change, entrepreneurship, and design. The group is going global with its first Mindr talk in London set for this Friday.