'The New Yorker' Nanny Cover Creates Quite a Stir — What Do You Think?

The New Yorker's Sept. 9, 2024 cover featuring nannies has people talking on social media.

The scene, created by cartoonist R. Kikuo Johnson, shows women of different races watching kids at the playground.

A Black woman is showing another nanny a cell phone photo of her own child in cap and gown as she cradles a white child.

According to one social media user, people aren't really getting the cover at all. Read on to find out about the varying conversations The New Yorker nanny cover has inspired.

A creator on X who shares content using the handle @yuhline shared a photo of The New Yorker cover, along with the caption, "I don’t think people are really understanding this cover."

In a follow-up tweet, the creator explained, "Also, to make the point and the point more poignant….the piece is called 'A Mother’s Work.'"

Indeed, the story is billed as "A glimpse into the lives of New York's caretakers." Meanwhile, the illustration, created by cartoonist R. Kikuo Johnson, is of "a scene that is both familiar and overlooked" per the outlet.

The post on X went viral immediately and inspired over 1,000 comments.

One popular comment said, "I was a nanny on the UWS in college. I was the only white adult at the playground. I became friends with some of the nannies. One told me her pay and I was horrified I was making so much more for a part-time gig. This was 2006, I was 19, and I finally realized my white privilege."

Someone else said, "I admit, at first look, I just thought it was showing normal, blended families. Upon a second glance, 'Oh yeah, rich white people having their kids safely raised by the help,' the folks they don't pay enough and want to deport."

All sides of the issue were seemingly dissected on X, with yet another commenter sharing, "My mom’s a nanny and for some of the kids she takes care of, she is a better parent to them than their own parents are. However, that means that many of the times I needed her as a kid, she wasn’t there because she was busy taking care of someone else’s kid. It’s a weird experience."

Discussions about wages, illegal immigration, rich people, and entitlement abound in the comments.

But not everyone saw the cover as being so complex.

Many people said this is just a common sight in New York, and no big deal. "This is as old as the story of Moses. But new to this generation, of course," one commenter sniped.

Meanwhile, other commenters weren't sure why working families were seemingly being demonized for creating jobs for nannies.

Finally, plenty of commenters were offended that the original poster assumed that others wouldn't understand what the cover was about. "Oh, we understand it better than you think," someone assured the creator.

In the end, if The New Yorker nanny cover was meant to inspire discussion, it sure did!