Congress is back in DC, tell them we need child care now!
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Dear Friend,

Summer break is over, and not only are kids back in school, Congress is
now back in session! I don’t know what summer and the last year and a half
looked like for members of Congress, but on my end, it looked like a
frazzled parent hiding out in the car in front of my house for 15 minutes
after grocery shopping. But maybe that was just me…

[ [link removed] ]That’s why we need Congress to MOVE FORWARD as soon as possible on
solutions that can help us and our families!  Urge your elected leaders to
make a comprehensive, affordable, high-quality child care and Pre-K system
for families a reality by passing the Build Back Better Plan.

Listen, we KNOW that this past summer (and frankly, the past year and a
half) has taken a toll on all of us. From women, especially women of
color, being forced out of the workplace in record numbers due to a lack
of child care [1], to child care centers struggling to stay open, [ [link removed] ] to
our children going through unprecedented social-emotional challenges – and
even more so for kids of color and kids with disabilities. [ [link removed] ][ [link removed] ]  This is
why we need real SOLUTIONS that can put our country on the right track so
that we can all thrive.

The good news is that we are already on that path! Child Care and Pre-K
have passed the U.S. House of Representatives - which is HUGE! But this
movement in the House is just the first step. It’s critical that the U.S.
Senate and all of Congress continue to advance child care and early
learning so we can end the struggle with child care for families
throughout the country, boost our economy, and help businesses.

[2]*Let’s make sure Congress feels our MOMentum! NOW is the right time to
Build Back Better and build a child care infrastructure!

Like clean water, safe food, and good public schools, high-quality,
affordable child care is a national priority that benefits everyone. [ [link removed] ] 
We as a country want to ensure that all children, families, and
communities can thrive – and we have the ability to do that by coming
together to invest in a bright future for all of us.

This is OUR moment. Now that child care has passed the U.S. House, now we
need to get it through the U.S. Senate and through all of Congress to get
to victory.  In other words, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to
let our elected leaders know that we need sufficient funding for child
care and early learning so that we can build a nation where every child
can thrive, including:

* No family pays more than 7% of their income on child care
* Child care providers are paid living, family-supporting wages
* Families can find affordable, high-quality child care no matter where
they live

Right now, we are in a moment where Congress is poised to build a child
care infrastructure! And the clock is ticking. For too long, chronic
underinvestment in child care has wreaked havoc on a family’s economic
stability, gender, racial and economic inequality, child development, and
school readiness. Child care remains extremely expensive and out of reach
for too many families. For low-income families, child care expenses for
children under five eat up 35% of their income [ [link removed] ], and in more than half
of states, child care for an infant in a child care center costs more than
in-state college tuition! [ [link removed] ]

The current lack of childcare doesn’t just hurt families, it hurts
businesses and our economy too.  In fact, there have been major economic
impacts as well, American businesses lose an estimated $12.7 billion each
year due to child care challenges. [ [link removed] ] 

But it doesn’t have to be this way! We can fix this!

[3]This is why we need YOU to take action on child care! Join us to
welcome back Congress to Washington, DC by calling on them to advance
child care and early learning!

It’s time to push Congress to help us achieve a historic VICTORY by making
the biggest investment in child care and early learning in decades a
reality.

Thank you for joining our team as we stand together for child care!

- Nadia, Nina, Kristin, Donna, and the whole MomsRising.org/MamásConPoder
Team

 

References:

[1] "[4]The Primal Scream: America's Mothers are in Crisis"
[2] "[5]After mass closures, too little support, post-pandemic child care
options will be scarce"
[3] "[6]A National Agenda for Children’s Mental Health"
[4] "[7]Mental health implications of COVID-19 on children with
disabilities"
[5] PDF: "[8]PRINCIPLES FOR CHILD CARE: A VISION FOR INVESTING IN
HIGH-QUALITY, AFFORDABLE CHILD CARE"
[6] "[ [link removed] ]Working Families Are Spending Big Money on Child Care"
[7] "[ [link removed] ]The First Pillar of Care: Cost"
[8] "[ [link removed] ]The Child Care Crisis Is Keeping Women Out of the Workforce"


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