TIME Cover: Couples Not Having Kids

This week’s TIME cover is sure to stir debate. It concerns couples making the choice to not have children. In the story, TIME contributor Lauren Sandler “looks at the choice more American couples are making — to purposefully live their lives without children. The U.S. birthrate is lower than it’s ever been in recorded history, declining a staggering 9% from 2007 to 2011. Despite this trend, childfree women continue to face judgment and isolation from the constant din of America’s mommy culture, which still equates womanhood with motherhood.”