After our class discussion yesterday on child abuse and the Family Child Support Center I was thinking about child abuse and child care. I found this article discussing poverty and child abuse and how they relate to each other. During this semester as I've blogged about child care and maternity leave etc... I have focused quite a bit on the needs of the parents (due probably to becoming a parent myself) however, it was beneficial for me to read this article and then look at it from the childs perspective. If there are not child care options for low income families (or any families) the risk factors for child abuse increase. So although my other post shows that congress has pout monies into child care options for families who qualify for TANF it is not enough. Good options for child care not only assist the parents in their juggling act but also may assist parents in preventing child abuse by offering them the assistance they need to be able to cope with their day to day struggles.
In summary this issue of child care in the US is huge, and in my opinion (which is now an educated opinion) requires more attention at the policy level.
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I agree. Additional policy attention for quality, affordable child care is drastically needed. Life has a single parent is stressful. There is never enough time, rarely enough money and generally a great deal of stress. Unless the single parent has good support from outside sources (including family friends) you can feel like you are going at it alone. There are definitely a lot of risk factors for child abuse and neglect in that picture. Children really are a greatest resource. As a nation, we really need to step up and make sure we protect and foster that this valuable resource.
ReplyDeleteTo Liz--excellent post. To Jessica--terrific response. The failure to invest in children, regardless of their family structure, SES, location, etc., is the failure to invest in the future of our society. We all are the poorer for it.
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