Blog

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  • Child Poverty

    Why We Should All Be New York Child Defenders

    We are the ones we are waiting for to create another New York where our marginalized children are free to be children and have a real opportunity to meet their full potential.

    | New York

  • Education

    Don’t Put Youth Education in Handcuffs Too!

    Youth are still growing and learning at such a young age. They should not be subjected to such a harsh punishment because that affects them long-term. Placing them in juvenile detention centers does more damage especially when these centers are not equipped to truly help them on their educational journey.

    | National

  • Child Welfare

    This Month, Act to Fund Care Not Cages

    Continued reliance on institutional placements puts our nation’s children—especially Black children—at risk of lasting harm to their health, development, and well-being. Congress must prioritize effective community-led, family-focused, youth-centered programs to ensure young people have the resources and supports they need to thrive within their families and communities.

    | National

  • Youth Justice

    CDF-NY Pushes for Criminal Record Sealing This Month

    Criminal convictions create life-long barriers to employment, housing, and education that directly impact the conditions for children and families. Clean Slate is a crucial step toward racial and economic justice, addressing some of the deep racial disparities that are evident at every stage of the criminal legal system, and providing pathways to more full participation in our neighborhoods and communities, which is essential to the well-being of children, youth, and families.

    | National

  • Child Poverty

    Work Requirements Would Undermine the CTC's Impacts on Racial and Economic Justice

    We know that more than half of Black and Latino children were previously excluded from the CTC because their families did not make enough money to qualify, and re-imposing this racist policy could exclude millions of children of color and reverse the gains our nation has made thus far. As Congress works through  the Build Back Better reconciliation package, the CTC should be  strengthened to reach every  child,  not weakened by cuts or undermined with work requirements.

    | National

  • Education

    This Month, Act to End the Cradle-to-Prison Pipeline

    The cradle-to-prison pipeline targets Black children and other children with marginalized identities. We must end school policing and exclusionary discipline and invest in student supports instead so students aren’t pushed out of school and into harmful systems.

    | National

  • Child Welfare

    A Time for Altruism

    Foster youth are on the cusp of a crisis in the middle of a pandemic. If our representatives in Washington D.C. don’t act fast, thousands of foster youth will age out of foster care on October 1st, and many more will lose a lifeline to flexible cash assistance that young people like me fought for. We need Congress to pass legislation that extends the protections included in the Supporting Foster Youth and Families Through the Pandemic Act immediately.

    | National

  • Education

    | Ohio
Starsky Wilson stands at a podium in front of a crowd.

Featured Blog Series

For Our Children

From the desk of President and CEO Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson, discover a new take on child well-being and advocacy. Read to learn more about shaping conversations, policies, and actions for improving the lives of our nation's children and youth.

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