Why You Should Care if the Kids Are Alright

Posted by Andrew Macurak on September 24, 2008

On my way to work, I’ve gotten into the habit of tuning in to Democracy Now! on Carnegie Mellon University’s radio station WRCT. A little muckraking early in the day is usually enough to take my mind off the sheer terror of sitting in traffic on a bridge that without warning sunk eight inches earlier this year. (I know I have no reason to worry – even though “more repairs must be done, PennDOT said lanes don’t need to be closed.” Still, I bet whoever made that announcement wasn’t a hundred feet above the Monongahela River at the time.)

This particular morning, as I glanced nervously at the Port Authority bus in front of me and other heavy vehicles beside and behind me, I listened to an interview with, Marian Wright Edelman of the Children’s Defense Fund. Edelman spoke of contemporary public policy’s lack of provision for child welfare, since children can’t vote and have little lobbying done on their behalf. (And who profits from safe, happy, healthy children, besides maybe organic baby clothing manufacturers?)

Beyond the obvious reasons why child welfare is important—children should not suffer on account of their parents’ choices, children have no capacity to provide for themselves, children are the future of America—the argument that the welfare of children is as much an economic development issue as it is a social justice issue came to the forefront of my mind.

The trend toward community development corporations and health and human services agencies coordinating investment in people with investment in real estate and development of businesses is a perfect illustration of the convergence of fairness and mutual benefit. Child welfare is a public safety (and thus a neighborhood vitality) issue—unsupervised, unmonitored, unmentored children can be a real hazard to residents and businesses, thereby perpetuating and accelerating blight and deterring investment. Child welfare is a workforce issue—if the talents and capabilities of so many of children remain untapped due to their lacking basic needs and adequate education, where will industry find the next generation of skilled workers? Child welfare is a fiscal issue—give children the capacity to become productive members of society today and taxpayers won’t be paying for their material needs, health care, or possible incarceration tomorrow.

A story, Trading Bullets for a Better Future, published in the Fall 2008 issue of Shelterforce points to a handful of successful youth development organizations, but also to the fact that some states are now creating actual policy that helps to support these types of operations.

Also, Check out CDF’s ranking of your local legislators’ records on children’s issues to arm yourself with data before you enter the ballot box this November. If you’re not concerned about social justice simply because it’s right, think about its benefit to businesses, our economy, and our neighborhoods. They may not be immediate, but they are tangible—even though, as with many critical policy initiatives’ benefits, reaping them involves delaying taxpayer gratification.

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