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Politics & Policy

Child Watch® Column: Time for "Good Trouble" Inside and Outside Congress

July 1, 2016
Congressman John Lewis' call to action in the U.S. House of Representatives on June 22nd was the beginning of an extraordinary event in our nation's Capitol.
Marian Wright Edelman's picture

Families First Prevention Services Act Introduced

June 30, 2016
On Tuesday, June 21, the House passed by voice vote the Family First Prevention Services Act (H.R. 5456), introduced in the House by Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) and others. Many advocacy groups were supportive of this bipartisan bill, which would allow states to use federal child welfare dollars to pay for family services to prevent children from needing to enter foster care. These services could include mental health services, substance abuse services (including opioid and heroin abuse services), or in-home parenting skills programs (including individual and family therapy).
Lecia Imbery's picture

New Labor Law Has a Hidden Benefit for Working Moms

June 30, 2016
The Department of Labor announced last month that it will extend overtime protections to millions of additional workers, beginning in December. As many are celebrating the impact these new overtime rules will have on their pay, few have recognized that the rules come with a hidden benefit for mothers: a right to break time and a private (non-bathroom) space to pump breast milk for their babies.
Liz Morris's picture

Paul Ryan's Anti-Poverty Plan: 'Better Lipstick. Same Pig.'

June 28, 2016
Author's note: Earlier this month,, we discussed the June 16 event hosted by the Coalition on Human Needs, What Works – And What Doesn’t – To Reduce Poverty and Expand Opportunity . As part of that event, Melissa Boteach, vice president of the Poverty to Prosperity Program at the Center for...
David Elliot's picture

Paul Ryan's Anti-Poverty Plan: 'Better Lipstick. Same Pig.'

June 28, 2016
Author's note: Earlier this month,, we discussed the June 16 event hosted by the Coalition on Human Needs, What Works – And What Doesn’t – To Reduce Poverty and Expand Opportunity . As part of that event, Melissa Boteach, vice president of the Poverty to Prosperity Program at the Center for...
David Elliot's picture

From trauma to civic engagement: Tacoma mom breaks decades long silence to protect vulnerable teens

June 27, 2016
M ykleAnn kept it bottled up all these years, the memory of the night she'd gone off to a party in Tacoma, looking for fun, and wound up getting raped. She was just 14 years old. Bloodied and bruised, she never uttered a word to anyone out of fear that if her father found out, he would kill the guy...
Roberta Riley's picture

Child Watch® Column: "#LoveWillWin"

June 24, 2016
Sunday, June 12, America woke up to news of the worst mass shooting in our gun-soaked history. A celebration of Latin Night at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando turned into a killing field fueled by intolerance, hate and weapons of war. Now is the time to remember those who stand up and stand together in love.
Marian Wright Edelman's picture

Let's Talk About LGBTQ Family Economic Security!

June 23, 2016
Join us on Wednesday, June 29th at 2pm ET for a #WellnessWed Twitter Storm about LGBTQ Family Economic Security!
Sara Alcid's picture

LaJuana Clark's Story: 'It's Not How I Start. It's How I Finish.'

June 21, 2016
Author’s note: Last week, we discussed the Coalition on Human Needs' June 16 event, What Works – And What Doesn’t – To Reduce Poverty and Expand Opportunity . As part of that event, we heard the story of LaJuana Clark, who has struggled with homelessness and under-employment. This is LaJuana’s...
David Elliot's picture

Labor-HHS-Education Bill Moves in the Senate

June 16, 2016
On Thursday, June 9, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed (29-1) the FY17 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education (Labor-HHS-Ed) spending bill, the first bipartisan Labor-HHS-Ed bill in seven years. The measure would provide $161.9 billion in discretionary (annually appropriated) funding, $270 million below FY16 levels and $2 billion below President Obama’s request.
Lecia Imbery's picture

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