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Did you know New Mexico is the worst state for child hunger and Massachusetts tops all states in nearly every ranking of public school students’ reading and math proficiency? Check out CDF’s new report, The State of America’s Children® 2014, to find out how your state compares to other states. The report provides state-by-state data and comparisons on all indicators of child well-being. Additional resources provide a look at the 10 best and worst states for children in categories ranging from extreme poverty to health coverage to enrollment in early childhood development and learning programs.
“Let us march on poverty until no American parent has to skip a meal so that their children may eat. March on poverty so that their children may eat. March on poverty until no starved man walks the streets of our cities and towns in search of jobs that do not exist.” – Martin Luther King Jr. Fifty years after President Lyndon Johnson declared a war on poverty, and Rev. Dr. King marched for jobs and justice, America’s dream is vanishing for millions of Black children. CDF’s new report makes clear the state of Black children in America. For the first time the majority of children in America under 2 are now children of color. One in three is poor. Black children were the poorest group. In six states – Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, Oregon and Wisconsin – half or more Black children were poor and nearly half of all states had Black child poverty rates of 40 percent or more. Learn more from The State of Black Children in America fact sheet. Commit to being part of the solution this Black History Month, by joining CDF’s Black Community Crusade for Children as an organization or individual.
One of the best ways to help lift Black children and all children out of poverty is increased investments in high-quality early childhood development and learning programs. We were pleased to hear President Barack Obama renew his commitment to federal support for pre-kindergarten (pre-K) for all children during his State of the Union address and echo his call for states and local governments to continue to move forward for young children. CDF is thrilled to support Mayor Bill de Blasio’s proposal for universal pre-K and after-school investments in New York City, paid for by a slight increase in the income tax for earners in the city with incomes over $500,000 – the top 1 percent of earners. Momentum is building as governors across the country call for increases in early learning in states. But children should have a level playing field and their success in being ready for school should not be subject to a lottery of geography. Congress must act to ensure all children, especially poor children, access to pre-K and we must not relent until they do. Raise your voice! Urge your members of Congress to co-sponsor the Strong Start for America's Children Act (S. 1697, H.R. 3461) that would lay the foundation for future success for millions of children and our nation. This week the House finally passed the long-delayed farm bill and the Senate is expected to take it up early next week. CDF is deeply disappointed that the final bill includes an $8.6 billion cut to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). An estimated 850,000 households will see a reduction on average of $90 per month in their food assistance. These shameful cuts come on top of cuts late last year. SNAP benefits serve more than 22 million children — that’s more than 1 in 4 of all children in America. More than 2 million children were lifted out of poverty with SNAP benefits in 2012. When more than 1 in 9 children lack access to adequate food and millions of poor children and families are struggling to recover from the recession, we must strengthen, not cut, the lifelines for poor children. Earlier this month Congress finally passed and the President signed an omnibus appropriations bill for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2014. This was a step forward, especially with some modest new investments in early childhood, but did not go nearly far enough to meet the many unmet needs of children. President Obama is expected to release his FY2015 budget on March 4, which should then be followed by budget proposals in the House and Senate. We hope you will join us in urging our leaders to invest in children and to be careful what they cut! CDF and AASA, The School Superintendents Association, with support from The Atlantic Philanthropies, have partnered to help 10 school districts across the country from California to South Carolina explore alternatives to suspension and expulsion for nonviolent offenses. Far too many children, especially children of color and children with disabilities are pushed out of school because of policies and practices that apply harsh discipline for what used to be solved with a trip to the principal’s office. The initiative will support school superintendents who have demonstrated a commitment to improving their discipline policies and practices in order to keep children learning in classrooms and in schools. Read the press release. In New York, the only state besides North Carolina that prosecutes all youths 16 and older as adults, we launched a campaign to “Raise the Age” last year and called for the state criminal justice system to treat children as children. This month New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a Commission on Youth, Public Safety and Justice to study the issue and make recommendations by the end of the year. Learn more about CDF-New York’s campaign. Help Us Change the Odds for Children!
We’ve heard their stories. Each one has overcome tremendous adversity to succeed in school and give back to their community. Each one has a remarkable Beat the Odds® story. Each one will share her or his story with you at an upcoming Beat the Odds Celebration. Register now:
Next month look for Freedom Schools in LA County Juvenile Camps, a new report by Vital Research in partnership with University of California, Los Angeles, University of Southern California, Los Angeles County Office of Education, Los Angeles County Probation Department and the Office of Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas about the impact of the CDF Freedom Schools® program in juvenile probation camps in Los Angeles county, which has more children in detention or on probation than any other county in the country. Watch this inspiring video of Freedom Schools in action there. |
