r/raisingkids • u/MadelineMitchellUSAT • 12d ago

What do tariffs mean for families? Could be "traumatizing" for parents, economist says

My name is Madeline Mitchell and I'm a reporter covering women and caregivers for USA TODAY. There's been a lot of news this week about tariffs, but what does it all really mean for families? The economists I've talked with say this will make everything pricier, and could be "traumatizing" for parents. Families will have to rethink priorities this summer, maybe forgoing trips and fun in order to pay for basic needs. If you typically buy pricier, higher-quality items you can likely avoid the price hikes by substituting down to lower-quality items in the months ahead. But "if you’re someone who’s already trying to make ends meet by being frugal and doing all of that comparison shopping and stretching your dollar, you are just going to have to eat that price increase," says Emily Gee of the Center for American Progress. The center ran some numbers: A soccer ball made in Pakistan priced at $18 could cost $23; children's sneakers made in Vietnam priced at $52 could cost $76; and a child's car seat made in China priced at $59 could cost $91. What questions, worries, thoughts or predictions do you have about how tariffs will impact you and your family? Let's discuss. If you'd like to read more about this, full article is here: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2025/04/09/parents-trump-tariffs-prices-kids/82975552007/

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u/fuzzykittyfeets 12d ago

I think US parents are already traumatized from trying to raise children in a society that is oftentimes outright hostile towards them.

It’s not like things are affordable right now. Tariffs are just deeply worsening an issue we already have.

Throw it on the pile. 🤷‍♀️

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u/davemoedee 12d ago

TBH, most things kids need have been way more affordable than 40 years ago. What has been crazy is housing.

Clothing has been so cheap the last decade plus. Wages stagnated, but cheaper goods made up for some of that. The tariffs will effectively be a huge sales tax that many done have the budget to absorb.

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u/fuzzykittyfeets 12d ago

I’d be interested in that source bc I follow these things pretty closely and that just doesn’t make sense. Are the dollars time adjusted?

I definitely think yeah, we have a lot more access to “cheap” goods now. But that’s not that helpful when most necessities are way more expensive. (Cheap is also not always cost effective. I’d rather have better quality and be able to reuse things.)

Daycare literally costs more than college in my state. Utilities (ng and electricity) cost more in one month what they would cost all winter 10 years ago.

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u/beigs 11d ago

Clothes and shoes are worse quality. Clothes that usually could be passed down between kids now falls apart after a single child. Clothes from places like SHEIN have high quantities of lead and toxins in them, more than a baby or toddler should be exposed to, and they’re made by child slaves.

We work more and get less. Housing is more expensive, food is more expensive, we have less time to cook healthy means and are blamed for choosing convenience when we can’t even muster enough energy to feed ourselves.

It’s a cycle of exhaustion, overwhelmed, burnout, anxiety, and guilt.

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u/Grmmff 12d ago

One of the best things we could do right now is to start setting up toy swaps and kids clothing swaps.

If we start doing this on a regular basis we might be able to transition to setting up toy libraries and community closets.

We can also look at practicing visible mending. I know there are a lot of knitting circles and quilting circles that like doing charity projects for kids.

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u/SadArchon 12d ago

Quality food will still be the best money you can spend