Protect Children, Not Guns 2010

With over 280 million guns in civilian hands, the terrible truth is that there is no place to hide from gun violence. Children and teens are not safe from gun violence at school, at home, or anywhere else in America. According to this report, 3,042 children and teens died from gunfire in America in 2007—one child or teen every three hours, eight every day, 58 every week. Almost six times as many children and teens—17,523—suffered non-fatal gun injuries and the often lifelong emotional aftermath that follows. Gun violence drives thousands of vulnerable young people into the pipeline to prison.

CDF's Protect Children, Not Guns 2010 is a compilation of the most recent and reliable national and state data on gun violence in America. This report provides the latest statistics on firearm deaths by race, age and manner; highlights state gun violence trends and efforts to prevent child access to guns; dispels common myths about guns; and explains the significance of recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions on gun ownership. Download the full report and find out how you can help dismantle the pipeline to prison by standing up and taking action to help protect children from the effects of gun violence.

As part of Nickelodeon’s Dora the Explorer’s “Beyond the Backpack” school readiness campaign to prepare preschoolers for school, a series of celebrity designed backpacks have been unveiled and are being auctioned online to benefit the Children’s Defense Fund. Check out these one-of-a-kind backpacks personally designed by Shakira, Jessica Alba, Salma Hayek Pinault, Eva Longoria Parker, and many more celebrities. The auction ends September 2nd so be sure to place your bid today and check back often!

Organize Your Faith Community to Host a Health Coverage Enrollment Drive

One in every ten children—8.1 million—in the United States is uninsured and two thirds of these children are eligible for CHIP and Medicaid but not enrolled because of state barriers to coverage. CHIP and Medicaid provide low-cost or free health coverage for uninsured children and comprehensive benefits including doctor visits, vision, dental and mental health services, prescriptions, shots and immunizations, x-rays, hospitalization, specialty care, basic prenatal care and more.

As part of this year’s National Observance of Children’s Sabbaths^® weekend, October 15-17, 2010, faith communities across the country will hold outreach and enrollment events to link children to CHIP, Medicaid or local health clinics. Download state-specific resource packets to be utilized when planning an enrollment drive in your faith community and find out what steps you should be considering when planning your drive.

This summer, 102 CDF Freedom Schools sponsor-organizations served over 9,600 children in 84 cities and 29 states. Since 1995, over 80,000 children have had a CDF Freedom Schools program experience and nearly 9,000 college students, and 2,000 adult site staff have been trained to deliver this empowering model.

The CDF Freedom Schools program is now accepting applications to operate a site in the summer of 2011. Please note that the applications are due no later than Friday, October 15, 2010. If you have additional questions, please visit our website or contact Allison Merfeld at (202) 662-3589 or amerfeld@childrensdefense.org.

The Time for Education Reform is Now

With the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) on the horizon and the announcement this week that nine states and the District of Columbia have won Race to the Top Phase 2 grants to improve public schools, there is much attention to education. CDF President Marian Wright Edelman weighs in on the need to transform American education in her recent Child Watch^® column, Changing the Status Quo in our Schools, where she draws attention to the need to level the education playing field for poor and minority children. She agrees with President Obama and Secretary of Education Duncan “that the current state of American education is ‘morally inexcusable’ and ‘economically indefensible’—and that the time is now for our nation to stop talking about doing things differently, and actually do it. Millions of child lives are at stake. It's time for every parent, educator, community and political leader to put children first.” Read the column in its entirety and sign-up to receive the Child Watch column every Friday.

Our new CDF logo hoodies are brilliant with their purple full-sized logos in adult and youth sizes, or a logo placed in the upper left for adults sizes up to triple extra large. The 50/50 blended fabric is soft and breathable, pocketed in the front, and with a pull string hood. Order for yourself and for other CDF supporters at our Online Store.