Our Voice for Children
October 2019

The Candidates Want to Talk about Child Poverty--And We Want to Hear What They Have to Say

This month, we witnessed the 149th consecutive presidential debate without a question about addressing child poverty. However, more than 32,000 people like you have signed the petition calling for a child poverty question, and the candidates are noticing. We are grateful that Senator and presidential hopeful Cory Booker used his time during the Democratic debate to lament the fact that it has been 20 years since candidates were asked about the "violence in America of child poverty." We will continue to push for all candidates to have the chance to share how they will end child poverty in the next debate and we appreciate your support.


Advocating for All Children
The Children's Defense Fund is constantly fighting to ensure the health, safety, and well-being of all our country's children. Here are some of the ways we've been looking out for children this month:

After federal judges blocked a callous new public charge rule that targeted low-income immigrant families, CDF-Texas' Cheasty Anderson highlighted the need for outreach to concerned families.

We condemned the misuse of the child welfare system by schools in New Jersey and Pennsylvania that threatened foster care involvement to shame parents into paying $10 in school lunch debts.

We called for expanding housing vouchers as a way to address the affordable housing crisis that allowed nearly 1.4 million children to experience homelessness during the 2016-2017 school year.

In coordination with our partners, we released a guide to implementing the Family First Prevention Services Act, a landmark law with great implications for child welfare nationwide.


National Observance of Children's Sabbaths® Celebration
Thank you to all the partners who joined us throughout the month as we celebrated the 28th annual observance of Children's Sabbaths, "Uniting Hearts and Voices to End Child Poverty." We were so inspired to see the sermons, service activities, and even artwork motivated by the desire to better the odds for all children. If you missed out, we encourage individual and community observance of Children's Sabbaths year round.


Child Watch Roundup
In a Child Watch column shared this month, Marian Wright Edelman remembered the late Representative Elijah Cummings as a champion for the God-given potential in all children.

Catch up on the rest of Marian Wright Edelman's recent Child Watch columns:
Celebrating the Servant Leadership of Steven Minter
God Help Us to End Poverty in Our Time
Rev. C.T. Vivian's Wisdom

Be sure to look for a new Child Watch column every Friday afternoon.






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