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EARLY CHILDHOOD
DEVELOPMENT
PHOTOCOPY
PRESERVATION
TOTAL
Youth Development/After School/
Violence
APR-21-1993 15:05 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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94566244 P.02
COF
file
MWE
TO:
Hillary
FROM:
Marian
DATE:
April 20, 1993
RE:
Your quick visit to Unicef Board and an immediate
decision to sign the Convention On the Rights of The
Child
The last thing I want to do is burden you. I know how much
you need to focus on health reform. I do, however, think your
presence for a very short time at the Unicef Board meeting would
be a powerful signal of support for children to the international
community. It could be done in a few hours in a morning or an
afternoon -- whatever was best for you -- whether or not the
President signs the Convention immediately and I hope he will.
I believe the politics in favor of a decision to sign now
greatly outweigh the politics of delay. A broad range of groups
support this step (see the enclosed memorandum). It is time for
the United States to leave the company of the few pariah
non-signatory nations like Iraq, Libya, Cambodia, and South
Africa. Since we are able to make reservations on any piece of
the treaty that we may have a question about, any issues of
concern can be dealt with later.
I hope you and the President will look at the enclosed
memorandum and decide to act now.
APR-21-1993 15:05 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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MEMORANDUM
DATE:
April 19, 1993
TO:
Hillary Clinton
FROM:
Marian Wright Edelman
RE:
U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child and the
upcoming UNICEF Executive Board Meeting.
As you know, the United States is one of a small handful of
nations that have not yet acted on the U.N. Convention on the
Rights of the Child. As of January, 154 countries had ratified
(127) or signed (27) the Convention. This included every nation
in NATO except the U.S. The holdouts around the world included:
16 very small nations, many of them island nations (such as Fiji,
the Marshall Islands, Tonga, and Tuvalu): nine nations devolved from
parts of the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia -- nations which have
not had the time or focus to consider the Convention; and seven other
nations with populations of more than 3 million: Iraq, Libya,
Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Africa, and the United States.
In this country and around the world, people are incredulous that
the United States is keeping such company on the Convention.
The annual UNICEF Executive Board meeting in New York begins
on April 26th. I hope you will attend and speak about the
Convention. Supporters of the Convention in this country, as well
as UNICEF leaders and member nations on the UNICEF Executive Board,
will be looking for a clear signal of a change in position by the
U.S. Such a change, symbolic of a deeper U.S. commitment to the needs
of children at home and worldwide, would gain the Administration
a great deal of good will at home and abroad and greatly energize
the worldwide children's movement.
There are at least two possible ways to send this signal:
The White House could announce at the UNICEF Executive
Board session, or before then, that the President has
signed the Convention. This is the more dramatic step,
although signing the Convention still is a step well
short of sending it to the Senate for advice and consent
to ratification. Signing is, rather, a statement that
the Convention generally deserves support and the
Administration will study the Convention closely to
determine the conditions under which it will later send
the Convention to the Senate for ratification, if
appropriate.
APR-21-1993 15:06 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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94566244 P.04
O
If the President is not willing to sign the
Convention on this timetable, the White House and
State Department should give the U.S. delegation to
the UNICEF Executive Board substantial latitude to
state that the Administration is positively disposed
to the Convention, is uncomfortable with the prior
delays on this issue, is seeking rapid agency review,
and will be moving quickly to sign the Convention
and submit it for ratification unless unforeseen
difficulties arise.
The State Department Legal Advisor's office has begun reviewing
the Convention (again). But they are beginning a process -- referral
to the other agencies, examination of conflicts with U.S. law, and
recommendation of technical reservations upon possible submission of
the Convention to the Senate -- that will take many months and is
concerned with ratification of the Convention. While this process
should go forward (and be expedited), it is essentially irrelevant
to the upcoming UNICEF meeting or sending a positive signal soon.
Rather, the United States should send in the next few days, either
from the White House or at the UNICEF Executive Board next week, a
strong signal of support for the Convention short of a commitment
to proceed to ratification.
The Bush Administration took no action on the Convention
because it faced: an internal split among its agencies as to whether
it should act favorably; hostility to the Convention from the extreme
Right Wing (although a number of key moderate Republicans, including
Senators Dole and Lugar, support early Senate consideration of the
Convention) ; and, at best, indifference inside the White House.
The Clinton Administration needs to decide soon how to
act on the Convention. The isolation of the U.S. on this
children's issue may become increasingly uncomfortable for an
Administration so deeply dedicated to the children's cause.
Supporters of the Convention have begun to discuss how to
encourage the Administration to sign and ratify. New resolutions
urging the President to act have been introduced in Congress.
The American Bar Association (which has already endorsed the
Convention) will shortly be issuing another favorable report.
Analysis
1. The Convention. The Convention sets out a broad range
of civil, political, social, economic and human rights for
children. The rights range from freedom of expression, religion
and association to positive rights to health care, education and
subsistence, to protection from various forms of exploitation and
abuse. The Convention is an important statement of the human
rights of children. The elaboration of rights is coupled with
recognition of the central role of parents and the family in
directing a child's development.
APR-21-1993 15:07 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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Many of the Convention's components (but not all) already
appear in other international instruments, some of them already
ratified by the U.S. in many respects, the Convention reflects
the Declaration on the Rights of the child, the Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights, and the Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights.
The U.S. took an active role in the international working
group that negotiated and drafted the Convention over a 10 year
period. The U.S. delegation successfully sought numerous changes
to align the document's provisions with U.S. law. The U.S. then
joined the unanimous vote for the Convention on the floor of the
General Assembly on November 20, 1989. In 1990 at a World Summit
for Children held at the United Nations, the U.S. joined several
dozen other nations in signing a statement that included a
commitment to "work to promote the earliest possible ratification
and implementation" of the Convention. But the Bush
Administration never acted on these implicit and explicit
promises.
2. Bush Administration Concerns and Other Possible
Objections. While the Bush Administration signed the 1990 Summit
commitment to work towards ratification, it never formally
approved (or repudiated) the Convention. It is my understanding
that a number of agencies, including Education and HHS, supported
submitting the Convention to the Senate for ratification. While
they had specific concerns, many minor and a handful significant
(see below), they knew those concerns could be dealt with in the
ratification process, which allows the ratifying nation to take
"reservations" from or express "understandings" about particular
provisions. The Bush Administration Justice Department, on the
other hand, opposed moving along the Convention.
Here are the key concerns that have been raised either in
Bush Administration deliberations or by the Right Wing:
Abortion: The Right Wing has attacked the Convention as
"pro-abortion." In fact, the drafters went to great lengths
to make it wholly neutral on abortion so that both pro-
and anti-abortion nations could ratify it. The wide range of
ratifying nations (from the Vatican to Sweden) testifies to
the drafters' success in this regard.
Family. Some Far Right critics have claimed the
Convention is anti-family. This is specious. Throughout
the Convention the primary role of the family is
emphasized and reaffirmed. Family-supporting and parent-
protecting language appears in nearly a dozen articles. The
Convention on its face, and its support by many conservative
legislators here and governments abroad, in fact present an
opportunity to show that the Right Wing uses "anti-family"
claims as an indiscriminate slogan rather than an analytic
tool. Any fair reading of the Convention shows that it
protects children and families against unwarranted
APR-21-1993 15:07 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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94566244 P.06
government actions and does not give children rights
within their families that are more expansive than common U.S.
conceptions of what is appropriate.
Juvenile capital punishment. The Convention outlaws capital
punishment for crimes committed by children. The United
States is one of the very few nations that still allows such
punishment. President Clinton supports capital punishment for
adults, but we do not know if this belief extends to wanting
to continue to allow capital punishment for crimes committed
by juveniles. If it does, and the U.S. wanted to retain the
option of such capital punishment, it could take a reservation
from this particular clause.
Federalism concerns and economic rights. Broader concerns
relate to federalism (the convention covers many areas
governed exclusively or primarily by the states) and the
Convention's creation of economic and social rights as well as
political and civil rights (e.g., rights to basic health care or
a minimally adequate standard of living). Some believe such
human rights should not be the subject of international treaties.
These rights are, however, crucial to children. To the
extent that the Clinton Administration or the Senate feels
that the articulation of such rights is too extreme, the
Convention can be modified through "reservations" and
"undorstandings." Moreover, many of the Convention's
provisions are not self-executing under U.S. law and are
essentially procatory -- not requiring particular state
action or spending; and unlike some human rights treaties,
the Convention has no international dispute resolution process.
That parts of the Convention are not readily enforceable,
however, does not make the symbolic and public education functions
or the enforceable parts, any less important.
In short, there are no reasons why the U.S. can not join the
rest of the civilized world in signing and then ratifying the
Convention.
3. Support for the Convention. A very large array of
organizations and individuals with varied political perspectives
supports the Convention:
There was substantial bipartisan representation among
the 85 House and 60 Senate co-sponsors of the
1990 resolutions urging the President to forward the
Convention to the Senate for consideration of ratification.
Those resolutions passed both the House (H.Res. 312 on
September 17, 1990) and the Senate (S. Res. 231 on
September 11, 1990) by voice vote, without dissent. New
resolutions (S. Res. 70 and H. Res. 15) were introduced
in the last three months and have drawn broad bipartisan
support. Republican Senate sponsors include Dole,
Durenberger, Hatfield, Lugar, Specter and Chafee.
APR-21-1993 15:08 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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94566244 P.07
In early 1991, 13 Republican senators wrote President
Bush asking him to send up the Convention. The 13
included Minority Leader Dole and Sen. Lugar, the
ranking Republican on the Foreign Affairs
Committee.
Senators Lugar and Bradley co-chair a group working
toward U.S. ratification.
Organizations supporting ratification of the
Convention include: the American Academy of
Pediatrics, the American Association of Retired
Persons, the American Bar Association, American
Red Cross International Services, Amnesty
International, the Association of Junior Leagues,
B'nai R'rith, CARE, Catholic Charities, Christian
Children's Fund, Interaction, Oxfam, PLAN
International, the Presbyterian Church (USA),
Save the Children, the United Church of Christ,
the United Methodist Church, the U.S. Committee for
UNICEF, the YWCA, and dozens of other religious,
education, women's, labor, anti-hunger, relief,
and children's groups.
o
There is considerable interest in the Convention among
school children and educators. The NEA is taking an
active role in the grass roots ratification movement.
As noted before, the opposition has come from a sliver of
the very far Right Wing. But it is notable that the Right Wing
has lost its former ability to stop any and all human rights
treaties, as the U.S. ratified in recent years the Genocide and
Torture conventions and, in 1992, the Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights.
Note that if and when President Clinton signs the
children's Convention and then sends it to the Senate for advice
and consent, it will become one of several human rights treaties
pending in the Senate. President Carter signed and sent up,
inter alia, the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination
Against Women, the Convention on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination, and the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights. The Administration will have to decide which treaties to
move first, when, and how. Key Senators and groups in the human
rights movement will have varying views on which treaties to move
first. But the decision to sign the children's Convention need
not wait for these strategic decisions in the Senate.
APR-21-1993 15:09 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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April 20, 1993
SIX REASONS FOR THE PRESIDENT TO IMMEDIATELY SIGN
THE U.N. CONVENTION
ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
The President should sign the U.N. Convention on the Rights of
the Child now, rather than waiting for executive branch agencies to
develop a full package for ratification.
The United States is among a small handful of "pariah"
nations that have neither ratified nor signed the
Convention. At least 154 countries, including all of the
other NATO countries, have ratified (127 nations) or
signed (27). The main holdout nations are Iraq, Libya,
Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United States.
Signing the Convention signals a change in U.S. policy
and symbolizes a deeper U.S. commitment to the needs of
children at home and abroad.
The politics in favor of signing greatly outweigh the
politics for delaying. Support for the Convention is
very broad, coming from dozens of mainstream religious,
education, labor, women's, anti-hunger, law, and
children's groups. Supporters range from the Red Cross,
Catholic Charities, CARE, Save the Children and the
Presbyterian Church (USA) to AARP and the American Bar
Association. Dozens of members of Congress, including a
number of Republican Senators (most notably Senators Dole
and Lugar) have endorsed sending the Convention to the
Senate for consideration of ratification.
Concerns expressed by Convention opponents are either
specious (e.g., claims that the Convention is anti-
family), or where more serious (e.g., juvenile capital
punishment; federalism concerns) can be handled through
the "reservations" and "understandings" that typically
accompany a treaty's ratification. Evidence that such
concerns are readily manageable is the Convention's
signature or ratification by every other Western
democracy, including numerous federal systems (e.g.,
Canada, Germany).
Signing the Convention is a stop well short of sending it
to the Senate for advice and consent to ratification and
is by no moans acceptance of all the provisions. Signing
is, rather, a statement that the Convention generally
deserves support, that the nation is committed to the
APR-21-1993 15:09 FROM CDF 7TH FI 662-3570
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94566244 P.09
rights and welfare of children, and that the
Administration will study the Convention closely to
determine the conditions under which it will later send
the Convention to the Senate for ratification, if
appropriate. It is common for countries to sign
Conventions as a general signal of likely support before
doing the more time-consuning ratification work.
The annual UNICEF Executive Board meeting in New York
begins on April 26th. Supporters of the Convention in
this country and member nations on the UNICEF Executive
Board will be looking to the new Administration for a
clear signal of a change in position and a symbol of a
deeper U.S. commitment to the needs of children at home
and worldwide.
The Administration should not wait for a complete review
of the Convention by numerous executive branch agencies
incident to preparation of a ratification package -- a
process that should continue (and be speeded up), but
which will take many months. Such a delay will leave the
U.S. continuingly and increasingly isolated on this issue
and will miss opportunities to garner great good will
home and abroad right now.
If the President is not willing to sign the Convention on this
timetable, the U.S. delegation to the UNICEF Executive Board should
be given the latitude to state that the Administration is
positively disposed to the Convention. is seeking rapid agency
review, and hopes to move quickly to sign the Convention and submit
it for ratification unless unforeseen difficulties arise.
A more detailed memo is attached. I have shared that memo
with Bernie Nussbaum and a slightly altered version with Tim
Wirth.
TOTAL P.09
THE BLACK
Jab
COMMUNITY
CRUSADE FOR
CHILDREN
LEAVE No CHILD BEHIND
MEMORANDUM
HONORARY
CO-CHAIRS
Dorothy Height
TO:
BCCC Steering and Working Committees and Advisory Board
John Hope Franklin
BCCC WORKING
FROM:
Marian Wright Edelman
COMMITTEE
John Hurst Adams
DATE:
June 11, 1993
Kent Amos*
Byllye Y. Avery
RE:
Clementine Barfield
Status Report of the Black Community Crusade for Children
Barbara Wright Bell
(BCCC)
Angela Glover Blackwell*
Unita Blackwell
Geoffrey Canada*
Geraldine Carter
As you know, the Black Community Crusade for Children (BCCC)
James Comer
Marian Wright Edelman
James A. Forbes, Jr.
is engaging in five related activities to:
Harvey Gantt
Henry Louis Gates
Communicate the crisis facing Black children and
Edmund W. Gordon
Henry E. Hampton
the steps that must be taken to produce positive
A. Leon Higginbotham
outcomes for Black children and families.
William Lynch, Jr.
Steven A. Minter*
Robert Peterkin*
Build effective, informed African American leadership
Deborah Prothrow-Stith
focused on the needs of Black children.
Carolyn Reid-Green
Barbara J. Sabol*
Elsie L. Scott
Inspire, encourage, and support high quality, effective
YaSin Shabazz
personal and organizational actions, programs, and
Donald M. Stewart
Lisa Sullivan*
initiatives aimed at improving the life circumstances and
Carl Taylor
chances for Black children.
Reed V. Tuckson
John Turner*
Cornel West
Promote sound, effective initiatives and policies at the
Roger Wilkins*
local, state, and national levels that ensure every Black
Terry Williams
child a healthy start, a head start, and a fair start and
that support efforts aimed at revitalizing communities
*Steering Committee
and ensuring safety.
Reconnect the Black middle class and Black poor and
rebuild the extended Black community family that
historically has provided a web of support and a lifeline
of hope for Black children.
A 13 person Steering Committee, a 37 person Working Committee,
and a 300 person Advisory Board representing every key Black
network undergird and help guide the crusade coordinated by CDF.
NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
EASTERN REGION
MIDWEST REGION
WESTERN REGION
Children's Defense Fund
Rheedlen Centers for
Greater Cleveland Project
Urban Strategries Council Drew Child Development Corp.
25 E Street, NW
Children & Families
1501 Euclid Avenue
672 13th Street
320 East 111th Street
Washington, DC 20001
2770 Broadway
Suite 535
Suite 200
Suite 203
202 628 8787
New York, NY 10025
Cleveland. OH 44115
Oakland, CA 94612
Los Angeles, CA 90061
202 662 3580 FAX
212 866 0700
216 241 5000
510 893 2404
213 241 6800
2
Strong regional leaders and offices will play key roles. Targeted
media, religious, violence prevention, education, and freedom
school advisory committees have been formed. In addition, Dr.
Edmund Gordon, professor emeritus of Yale, chairs a special seminar
of leading African American academics on extant research concerning
African American males. A major report on Black males will be
published in 1994.
Steering and Working Committee members communicate regularly.
At least a dozen meetings and informal consultations by conference
call have occurred over the last year. A 5 day meeting of the
Working Committee in 1992, a 2 1/2 day meeting of 100 anti-violence
grassroots activists, and a full day meeting of the 300 person
advisory group at Howard University in March 1993 have helped lay
a solid foundation for long-term action.
Black Human Service Administrators, BCCC regional office
heads, the education advisory group, and other key leaders will
meet in July to refine further action priorities and strategies for
the crusade. We will report back to you with their
recommendations.
Publications and Media
Three publications, Progress and Peril, Prophetic Voices, and
Prayers for Black Children have been published. Please help us get
the word out about these to your networks. At least four
additional BCCC publications are in progress. A first phase media
campaign includes a logo-poster by artist Varnette Honeywood and
television public service announcements (PSAs). I hope you will
3
ask your local television stations to run them. A quarterly
newsletter, Necessary, has been launched and will be distributed
free of charge during 1993 to reach as many Black networks as
possible. Please give us the names of people you think should be
added to our mailing list. A toll-free telephone operation has
been established to respond to community and media inquiries. A
clearinghouse to collect and share best practices will be
established in the near future. Please let us know if you would be
willing to disseminate BCCC materials, including Necessary, to your
networks. Also let us know how many copies you would need so we
can plan ahead. I'd particularly appreciate your including the
BCCC materials in conference registration packets of your
organization's meetings.
BCCC television PSAs are running on NBC, CBS, CNN, FOX, BET,
MTV, VH1, Nick at Nite, Time Warner Cable and Comedy Central Cable.
Working and Advisory Committees are assisting us in getting the
spots aired on their local network affiliates and independent
stations as well. The BCCC has been adopted by the Young Black
Programmers Coalition (YBPC), an organization of some 300 Black
disc jockeys, program and public affairs directors at Black/urban-
oriented stations throughout the country. Their rallying cry is
"Do it for the Children, Now! Here's How: Call 1-800-ASK-BCCC."
They have offered their expertise in producing a series of radio
PSAs, getting celebrities to lend their names and voices to the
spots, and making copies of the PSAs available to their member
stations. This very exciting partnership enables us to make great
4
strides in reaching various facets of the Black community with our
message, and inviting them to become involved in the BCCC.
We are meeting with consultants about a possible BCCC poll
designed to invite a cross section of the Black community to let us
know their priorities and strategies for meeting the needs of Black
children and families in America today.
Leadership Development/Black College Student Summer Project
Identifying and developing at least 1,000 new Black leaders
under 30 with the skills needed to engage in effective social
change in the 90s and strengthening existing leadership is an
overarching priority. The Black Student Leadership Network (BSLN)
is the first fruit of this effort, and an impressive national Black
college student network is emerging. BSLN training is currently
underway at the Ella Baker Child Policy Training Institute at Shaw
University in Raleigh, North Carolina to prepare 22 field staff and
145 interns to run 17 Summer Freedom Schools for eight weeks for
disadvantaged Black children.
SUMMER FREEDOM SCHOOLS
LOCATION
# OF SCHOOLS
STAFF
INTERNS
CHILDREN
Oakland
3
4
24
480
Los Angeles
1
3
5
160
Charlotte
2
2
16
320
Raleigh
1
1
9
180
Durham
1
1
8
160
New York
5
4
51
1,000
Hartford
2
2
16
320
Washington, DC
2
4
17
340
Totals
17
21
146
2,960
5
Another 630 children are participating in an intensive summer
"Adventures in Excellence" program and Fun, Learning, and Food
program in Marlboro County, S.C. This is a long term demonstration
project to improve the outcomes for children by mobilizing an
entire community to have high expectations for all its children.
School readiness, school achievement, parent support, and youth
empowerment are key ingredients. The food, learning, and fun
component, which was a part of "Adventures in Excellence" in 1992,
helped inspire the BSLN Freedom Schools model in 1993.
We hope some of these Summer Freedom Schools will blossom into
year-round after school academic and cultural efforts in schools,
churches, and community centers. Our goals are to provide positive
alternatives for children and youths during the long, idle summer
months; to reach more of the 12.6 million children who are eligible
for free and reduced-price meals in the summer (1.9 million are
currently served) i to keep students from losing academic ground
during the summer; and to provide children more interaction with
positive adult role models. BSLN staff has helped develop the
training curriculum of the President's National Service program.
We will be seeking to encourage the National Service Commission, as
well as the United States Department of Agriculture, to combine
child feeding with service efforts in 1994 and beyond.
Our first major religious publication, Prophetic Voices: Black
Preachers Speak on Behalf of Children, has received a positive
response, and we are actively promoting it to seminaries and
institutions of higher education, to the media, and to a range of
6
Black Community Crusade for Children and Children's Defense Fund
networks. Our second major religious publication, a compilation of
church-based model programs that are making a positive difference
in the lives of Black children, will be published this summer. The
third publication, Building Critical Life Skills: A Primer for
Individuals, Families and Other Groups, focusing on decision-
making, problem-solving, conflict resolution and advocacy skills,
will be published this fall.
Our Religious Coordinators will participate in all the major
annual national religious conventions this summer. BCCC materials
will be widely distributed at these events, and we will be
encouraging thousands of Black churches to participate in our
annual children's sabbath and examine ways they can strengthen
youth ministries. The BCCC also will have a presence at more than
a dozen of the national summer conferences held by major Black
professional and social organizations. We will be actively
involved in the entire 7-city, summer-long Black Family Reunion
Celebration organized by the National Council of Negro Women with
an information booth, a children's artwork project and the
involvement of Sunday School classes in each site. BCCC will be
represented at such conferences as One Hundred Black Men of
America, Inc., A. Philip Randolph Institute, National Newspaper
Publishers Association, National Black Women's Health Project,
National Association of Black Journalists, National Bar
Association, Inc., Knights of Peter Claver, Black United Front,
National Urban League, and all of the major Black fraternities and
7
sororities. Grassroots networks like the Head Start Association,
Title I, parents, and housing project activists also are key
targets.
Please let me know if you would be able to or willing to
distribute BCCC publications in bulk to any of your constituency.
Black church fans and magnets with a pledge to children will be
available shortly. Tanya Murphy, in my office, will be happy to
relay your requests to appropriate BCCC and CDF staff. You may
reach Tanya at extension 3578. I regret the delay in getting the
television PSAs and posters to you. This will not happen again.
I hope you will help get them on the air by sharing them with your
local stations.
Anti-Violence Network
The Anti-Violence Network (AVN) came together as the result of
a very successful initial meeting in March, at which some 100
mostly grassroots violence prevention experts from around the
country came together to look at ways they can work together. The
goals of the AVN are to: mount a public education campaign about
the degree of violence against children; to put a child's face on
violence and force us to confront the shameful murder of a child
every 3 hours fueled by the proliferation of handguns; provide
members with information and technical assistance about federal
violence prevention legislation and funding and engage in state and
federal advocacy together; gain strength from each other and
maximize scarce resources allocated to violence prevention by
ensuring that the best community-based efforts are not being
8
shared. The Children's Defense Fund is hiring a full time anti-
violence staff which we hope will be on board in the next 60 days.
1993 Policy Goals: Head Start and Immunizations
The two key policy goals for 1993 are to insure full funding
for a quality Head Start program for every eligible child, and
universal access to childhood immunizations. These provisions are
included in the President's budget and in the House Budget
Reconciliation Bill. We are struggling to keep them in the Senate
Budget Reconciliation Bill and in any final agreement between the
White House and Congress.
Three additional investments -- a $28 billion expansion of the
Earned Income Tax Credit for low income working families, new
family preservation policies, and significant expansion of child
and family nutrition programs -- are also strong priorities. They
are still alive, but it is clear that we may have a long term
struggle on our hands.
We urge you to call your Congressmen and Senators urging their
support of these crucial child investments.
RECEIVED MAY 27 1993
Children's Defense Fund - Ohio
TaRessa Donne
9"
52 East Lynn Street, Suite 400
Columbus, Ohio 43215-3508
DEAR LORD
BE GOOD TOME
SenD To
Mark Real
Director
THE SEAiS so
WIDE AND
new has
Mary Lazarus
MYBOATIS
Community Volunteer
so SMALL
&
Robin Harris
wing
Writer/Researcher
Telephone (614) 221-2244
committer
Chris Stoneburner
Fax (614) 221-2247
Early Childhood Advocate
Exampl L- necessary
ato.-
To:
Marian, Sharon, Cliff, Renee, Lynn, Paul, Luann, Leslie, Olive, Phyllis, Sandra
From:
Mark Realn
Subject:
Release of Facing the Facts: A Progress Report on Ohio's Black Children
*Front page -
Cleveland Plain Dealer - quotes Lolly
Cincinnati Enquirer - quotes Eileen
Akron Beacon Journal - quotes Robin
Toledo Blade - quotes Mark
*Metro section -
Columbus Dispatch - quotes Mark
*Radio coverage was extensive.
We're very pleased the release of the report is giving visibility to our Cleveland and
Cincinnati offices. In addition, we will be mailing copies of the report and news articles to
everyone who attended the May 19 dinner. It's been a great way to publicly open our Cincinnati
project.
Marian Wright Edelman, President
Lolita McDavid, MD, Advocate
Children's Defense Fund
Children's Defense Fund
National Office
Greater Cleveland Project
25 E Street, N.W.
1501 Euclid Ave., Ste. 535
Washington, D.C. 20001
Cleveland, Ohio 44115
Telephone (202) 628-8787
Telephone (216) 241-5000
STATE
Black kids
feel sting
THE ENQUIRER
of poverty
Ohio's future at stake, study says
BY DICK KIMMINS
Recommendations
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Nearly
The Children's Defense
half of Ohio's 370,000 black chil-
Fund-Ohio report urges the
dren live in extreme poverty,
state to:
meaning their families' incomes
Expand prenatal care.
are less than $8,000 a year.
Boost early childhood
But nearly 40% of Ohio's black
education.
families are middle class with in-
Create job opportunities.
comes of $25,000 or more, the
Increase public school
Children's Defense Fund-Ohio re-
intervention programs.
CINCINNATI
ports in a study to be released
"Meeting these goals is
today.
important, not only for black
Those contrasts are typical of
children, but for all chil-
the study, titled Facing the Facts:
dren," the report states.
A Progress Report on Ohio's Black
"When children grow to
Children.
reach their full potential as
Other comparisons include:
productive members of soci-
More black children live past
ety - society prospers. We
the age of 1 than a decade ago
cannot afford to waste the
because of improved intensive care
talents of even one child."
in hospitals, but compared with
1980, black children in Ohio are
more likely to be born underweight
"When you help black children,
or have a mother who received late
you help all children," Reed said.
prenatal care.
The Children's Defense Fund
More black children are at-
says the rate of poverty among
tending preschool - but fewer are
black children - the "poorest of
attending or graduating from col-
the poor" in Ohio - leads to low
lege than were 10 years ago.
self-esteem, poor school perform-
More black children live in
ance and spiraling costs of state
middle-class families, but more are
and federal social assistance pro-
born out of wedlock or become
grams.
teen parents.
Unless the downward trends
The report notes that public
are reversed, "many poor black
school performance of black chil-
children will not have the opportu-
dren has been monitored by the
nity to contribute to their own, nor
Children's Defense Fund and the
the state's, economic future," the
Ohio Department of Education.
report says. "The greatest cost is
"Within the (state's ninth-grade
lost potential and productivity."
proficiency) test, scores indicated
The Children's Defense Fund-
that black students are only a third
Ohio is part of an independent
as likely as white students to pass
national organization supported by
the mathematics segment of the
contributions from foundations,
exam," the report found.
corporations and individuals.
Eileen Cooper Reed, Southwest
Last year, 45% of white ninth-
Ohio advocate for the organization,
graders taking the test for the first
said the report is intended to edu-
time passed all four parts, and 15%
cate and mobilize policy-makers
of black ninth-graders passed all
and the public.
four.
Black family
earnings up,
but children
still suffering
5-24-93
By PAUL SHEPARD
PLAIN DEALER REPORTER
While increasing numbers of black
Ohio families are climbing the eco-
nomic ladder, black children are
more likely to be born into poverty
and in poor health, according to a
statewide study released today by
the Ohio Children's Defense Fund.
"There are two separate worlds for
black children in Ohio," said Lolita
M. McDavid, the defense fund's
Greater Cleveland advocate. "On one
hand. things are getting better for
some children, but the community
must realize that many others are be-
ing left behind."
According to the study, titled "Fac-
ing the Facts: A Progress Report on
Ohio's Black Children," nearly 40%
of black families in the state are mid-
dle-class, earning at least $25,000 an-
nually. That's the good news, says
McDavid, who noted that fewer than
25% of Ohio black households qual-
ified as middle class in 1970.
However, the rosier economic pic-
ture hasn't translated directly to the
well-being of black children in the
state. according to the report.
Nearly half of all black children in
Ohio live in extreme poverty, with
annual family incomes of less than
$8,000.
In Cleveland, 56% of black chil-
dren live in households receiving
public assistance. About 28% of white
children are on assistance, McDavid
said.
"The greatest cost is lost potential
and productivity," the report states.
"Unless these trends are reversed,
many poor black children will not
have the opportunity to contribute to
their own, nor the state's, economic
future."
The 32-page report repeats many
of the harsh statistics hat have been
in government reports for years re-
garding the lives of black children.
But it also includes a 21-step plan for
the public and private sectors that of-
fers long- and short-term solutions.
Chief among them:
Expand preschool participation
in the Head Start program from 47%
to the 63% eligible in the state.
Expand Medicaid coverage to in-
clude more pregnant women in poor
working families.
Provide
ongoing
services
through churches.
Increase black enrollment in
Ohio's colleges and universities from
the current 8.2% to 8.6% of the total.
The increase would represent an ad-
THE
ditional 1,900 black students in Ohio
schools.
McDavid said the job of improving
the lot of black children falls on the
shoulders of the black community.
"This is an issue where we have to
look at our resources," McDavid said.
"When I speak to black groups and
present the number, they are usually
shocked. The first thing we have to
do is get together and acknowledge
the problem.
The report points to the Metro-
Health Perinatal Outreach Project, a
maternal and infant health care pro-
gram, as an example of a Cleveland
program that works. Using commu-
nity workers who go door to door, the
program identifies pregnant women
in need of prenatal care.
Poor start
stays with
S Dispatch
The Columbus Dispatch
Monday, May 24, 1993
black kids
CHILDREN from 1B
Advocacy report
care, securing a quality public school
said. Problems mentioned by the
incremental improvements, such as
education, finding a well-paying job
defense fund such as too many low
decreasing black low birth weight
focuses on cures
and raising a family in economically
birth weight black babies are tied in
rates to 12.8 percent from 13.9 per;
depressed communities," the report
with other problems, he said.
cent. That would mean 325 infants
states.
"Low birth weight is an indica-
would be born weighing at least 5.5
By Jonathan Riskind
About 370,000 black children
tor of poor prenatal care, and that is
pounds and be less likely to havę
Dispatch Statehouse Reporter
live in Ohio; there are about 2.4
symptomatic of other problems that
health problems.
"I think if we go to nuts-and-
Nearly half of the black children
million white children.
exist in households," Gresham said.
in Ohio live in extreme poverty, says
A recently released report by
"If we don't get a handle on them, it
bolts
goals
the political apparatus
the National Commission on Chil-
a report to be released today by the
will continue to increase America's
begins to say, "This is possible,' ánd
Children's Defense Fund - Ohio.
dren found that numerically more
cost and the misery on those fam-
community people begin to say "The
than half of the nation's poor chil-
More than 40 percent of all
ilies."
recommendations are more germane
black families in Ohio are middle
dren are white. But proportionately,
The defense fund recommends
to our lives," Gresham said.
black children are almost three
class and most of those families are
times as likely to be poor as white
two-parent households making more
children.
than $25,000 a year, the report
While there has been progress
found.
Making Improvements
in some areas - for instance, more
But its title, Facing the Facts: A
black children are living past age 1
Children's Defense Fund-Ohio says a number of goals could be
Progress Report on Ohio Black Chil-
- black children in Ohio are more
reached by the end of 1994 that would improve the condition of black
dren, reflects the report's focus: Too
likely today than a decade ago to be
children in Ohio. Its "benchmarks for positive changes" include:
many black children live troubled
poor, born underweight and out-of-
lives plagued by poverty, ill health,
Trying to decrease low birth weight rates statewide from 13.9 percent
wedlock and themselves become
and lack of proper education.
to 12.8 percent so fewer black babies would be born with health
teen-age parents, the defense fund's
The defense fund, a private non-
problems.
Ohio report found.
profit advocacy and research organ-
"It is a slightly optimistic re-
Expanding Head Start, a preschool program for poor children, to be
ization, says agencies and others
able to serve 63 percent of eligible children, up from 47 percent. That
port, but it is a very sober report,"
trying to help black families and
would increase participation in the state and federally funded program to
said Mark Real, executive director of
children can make dents in the crisis
50,000 from 30,000. Gov. George V. Voinovich also wants to expand
Children's Defense Fund - Ohio.
by increasing access to prenatal care
Head Start.
The president of the Columbus
and basic education skills.
Urban League, Samuel Gresham,
Reducing Ohio's black infant mortality rate from 16.4 deaths per
Also, officials and communities
said the report is on target and
1,000 live births to 15 per 1,000.
must stress the need to lower teen-
reflects many of his organization's
Lowering the black teen-age birthrate from 26 percent to 21 percent
age pregnancies and increase the
local findings in its State of Black
of all births to black women.
number of unmarried fathers who
Columbus report issued in April.
Increasing the percentage of black women receiving early prenatal
take responsibility for their children,
"The issues they're raising are
care from 66 percent to 69 percent.
it says.
essential issues to the well-being of
Source: Children's Defense Fund-Ohio
Dispatch graphic
"Black families face barriers in
African-American families in the
obtaining proper health and prenatal
short term and long term," Gresham
Please see CHILDREN Page 2B
Page A8, Monday, May 24, 1993
Defense Fund points out as mak-
ing a difference in the lives of
A majority of black children in
Nearly half of Ohio's black chil-
QUOTE
"If we don't do more as
Nearly half of Ohio's
Ohioans for black
A better life for black children?
Defense Fund says private and public initiatives, state cooperation necessary
young black children.
Ohio aren't as lucky.
dren live in extreme poverty,
while more than 40 percent of
GRIM
See GRIM, Page A8
children, we're just
black kids live in poverty
writing lives off.'
ROBIN HARRIS
Continued from Page A1
Ohio's black families are middle
The report also recommends ex-
class, the report states.
panding successful job placement
The report documents the de-
the thousands of graduates.
But Norman, 23, has three fac-
tors working in his favor most
other black students don't: His
parents are married and still to-
gether, he is from a middle-class
background, and he is an only
Those are three things a report
released today by the Children's
programs like Cleveland Works, a
clines for Ohio's black children in
federally and locally funded pro-
school achievement, prenatal care
gram that provides education, job
and economic survival:
training and work-related experi-
In 1992, only 15 percent of
ences for welfare recipients. More
black students passed all four
than 500 adults and children have
parts of Ohio's Ninth Grade Profi-
been taken off public assistance be-
ciency Test on their first try, com-
cause of jobs received through the
pared to 45 percent for white stu-
program.
child.
dents.
Gains made by the University of
Black infants in Ohio are
Akron's Upward Bound Program
twice as likely as white babies to
are applauded in the report. The
be born with low birth weights and
program provides middle and sec-
die by their first birthday.
ondary school students with after-
Three of every five Ohio
school and weekend classes de-
COLUMBUS: Lee Norman is what
you might call an extraordinary
student. When only 8.2 percent of
Ohio universities' enrollment is
black, the mathematics major
graduating this summer from
Kent State University with hopes
of law school stands out among
black children live in single-parent
signed to build an academic foun-
households, usually headed by a
dation for both high school and
woman. Seventy-three percent of
college.
black female-headed households
Expanding Head Start programs
are poor.
BY ERICKA PIZZILLO
Special to the Beacon Journal
across the state is heavily empha-
Despite the grim prognosis,
sized, with a goal of moving it
there is hope for Ohio's black
from 47 percent of eligible children
youth.
to 63 percent. Head Start provides
"Such gains have been made
preschool, nutrition and immuniza-
for the black community," said
tion services to 3- and 4-year-olds
Robin Harris, a writer/researcher
who are below the poverty line.
of the report. "The future looks
Almost 38,000 children in Ohio
good if we all do things to help."
are served by the program; 1,738
The Children's Defense Fund is
of those are in the Akron area.
recommending both private and
Harris said the programs rec-
public initiatives to help combat
ommended will affect the lives of
the problems faced by Ohio's black
all needy Ohio children, because
youth.
most of the programs they suggest
Akron Beacon Journal
Through the private sector, the
should be expanded are directed
report suggests building on com-
toward families below the poverty
munity ties by organizing efforts
line, not just minorities.
through schools and churches.
But Ohio's black children are
In the public sector, government
agencies must look at these prob-
disproportionately affected by pov-
May 24, 1993
erty, Harris said.
lems differently and cut through its
own red tape, the report said.
According to the report, more
Making Medicaid more accessi-
than 38 percent of all children re-
ble to pregnant women for prenatal
ceiving Aid to Dependent Children
care, and modifying clinics' operat-
are black, while only 13 percent of
ing hours to serve working poor
Ohio's children are black.
parents are two of the suggestions
"If we don't do more as Ohioans
made to improve the health condi-
for black children," Harris said,
tions of black children.
"we're just writing lives off."
The Columbus Dispanch
Thursday
MAY 20, 1993
Head Start
brought 2
together
By Jonathan Riskind
Dispatch Statehouse Reporter
Paths that crossed in 1965 led
Freddie Johnson and Marian Wright
Edelman to the Capital Park Head
Start center on the Northeast Side,
where they met for the first time.
Together with Gov. George V.
Mike Munden/ Dispatch
Voinovich, they toured the center
and held a news conference to make
Marian Wright Edelman shares fingerpaints with Amber, left, William and
a case for expanding Head Start, a
Tiana at the Worley Terrace Head Start Center, 79 S. Central Ave.
state and federally funded preschool
program for poor children.
group's national board meeting is
educational experience was my pre-
Edelman, president of the Chil-
being held this week at Children's
school education I received from the
Hospital, partly for a daylong agen-
Mid-Delta Education Association
dren's Defense Fund, was a young
lawyer in 1965 who helped force
da discussing Ohio's success with
Head Start program," he said.
Mississippi to accept federal money
early intervention programs for low-
"That educational process is in
for Head Start so it could expand to
income children, a spokesman said.
large part why I stand before you
all parts of the state.
Johnson, a researcher for the
today as well as why I walked across
Edelman, who has close ties to
state Department of Health and a
the graduate stage this past Sun-
President Clinton and Hillary Rod-
recent law school graduate, credits
day.'
ham Clinton, also toured the Worley
much of his success to his enrollment
Johnson said he comes from a
Terrace Head Start center on the
in Head Start as a 3-year-old in
family of 13 children. Only the chil-
West Side.
Mississippi in 1965.
dren who took part in Head Start
The Children's Defense Fund is
Johnson, 30, graduated Sunday
went on to higher education, he said.
a national nonprofit, nonpartisan re-
from Capital University Law School.
search advocacy organization. The
"I believe my most significant
Please see HEAD START Page 2B
HEAD START from 1B
Head Start has been praised as an effective way to
recommending improvements.
prepare poor children for school and has been criticized
"That task force will work to ensure that, as our
as a stopgap measure with few long-lasting effects.
Head Start program expands in Ohio, we are, first,
-Voinovich wants to increase state spending on it to
monitoring program quality and, No. 2, assisting pro-
almost $74 million by 1995 from $27 million this year.
grams that need improvement," Voinovich said.
Ohio got $108 million this year in federal funding for
"There are those out there who are taking shots at
Head Start, and Clinton has proposed doubling total
it," he said, "and what we need to do is get more Freddie
federal Head Start spending, to about $6 billion, by 1998.
Johnsons out testifying to the success of the program."
The funding increase would make the program available
Edelman, too, said Johnson is evidence of Head
to all Ohio children whose parents want to take part,
Start's worth.
Voinovich says.
"None of us think Head Start is the perfect pro-
-The children who could be served by the program
gram, but we still think it is a very effective program,"
would go to about 80,000 a year from about 30,000.
she said.
Head Start is under some fire partly because recent
"None of us as parents would think that, if we did
studies and reports say it has expanded too fast, to the
something for our own children in their early years, we
detriment of quality at some centers.
should stop doing something in first grade or second
:- A Voinovich-appointed task force will be reporting
grade or third grade.
in June or July about the state of Head Start in Ohio and
"You have to keep at it."
The going is rough
for minority youths,
THE BLADE: TOLEDO, OHIO
MONDAY, MAY 24, 1993
Ohio statistics show
BY ANN FISHER
BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU
The study also
COLUMBUS There are more
found that fewer
African-American children in Ohio
who are poor than not and It shows,
African-American
in school test scores, birth weights,
mortality rates, and future poten-
children attend
tial, according to a progress report
released today by the Children's De-
college, and even
"This report has two messages,"
Black youths
working families. Ohio fails to tap
fense Fund-Ohio.
fewer get a degree,
federal funds that will pay 60 per
cent of the cost for this expansion.
said CDF-Ohio director Mark Real.
than in 1980.
Target resources and outreach
"One is that 40 per cent of black
Continued from Page 1
efforts to communities with high
youngsters [in Ohio] are now middle
rates of late prenatal care. Funding
class, and that's a tremendous
counterparts. In Toledo, nine per
ernment has to do it all," he said.
and coordination would come from
achievement. The bad news is that
cent of African-American students
The report recommends, for ex-
the Ohio Department of Health.
half of the black children in Ohio
passed all four parts, compared
ample, that church and community
Establish more community-
live in poverty and half are so poor
with 27 per cent of white students.
buildings be opened immediately for
based alcohol and drug treatment
that they have to depend on public
Furthermore, the report said,
teen pregnancy protection and af-
programs for pregnant women and
assistance programs. That is a terri-
fewer African-American children
ter-school programs.
new parents.
ble situation."
attend college today and even
According to the report, "A New
"Facing the Facts
A
Progress
fewer get a college degree - than
"In the case of after-school pro-
Private Agenda" should, among oth-
Report on Ohio's Black Children," is
in 1980.
grams there is public money avail-
er things:
a study in contrasts, examining the
By contrast, the cover page of the
able, but what they lack are sites,"
Educate elected officials about
gains made by Ohio's African-Amer-
Mr. Real said.
report depicts a graduate of the first
health issues and stimulate volun-
ican families as it details the de-
Head Start program, established in
The report also outlined "A New
teerism at local health clinics.
clines in child well-being. The re-
1965, who has since graduated from
Public Agenda" that should, among
Organize vaccination clinics.
port also outlines both a public and
Capital University Law School, tu-
other things:
Organize health fairs.
a private agenda to improve the
toring two Columbus area Head
Establish scholarships for stu-
odds for African-American children
Start enrollees.
Expand Medicaid coverage to
dents who want to pursue a medical
in Ohio.
Local involvement and solutions
more pregnant women in poor
career in the community.
Almost seven more African-
are at the crux of the remedies
American infants per 1,000 survive
recommended by the CDF, Mr. Real
today than in 1980, but they are
said.
more than twice as likely as white
"I think what's unique about this
infants to die before they are one
report is that we identify problems
month old.
in a new way, but we also point out
Last year, 15 per cent of African-
remedies that could be adopted im-
American students on their first try
mediately by every community.
passed all four parts of Ohio's Ninth
This is not a report that says gov-
Grade Proficiency Test, compared
with 45 per cent for their white
Turn to Page 4, Col. 1
Clinton Presidential Records
Digital Records Marker
This is not a presidential record. This is used as an administrative
marker by the William J. Clinton Presidential Library Staff.
This marker identifies the place of a publication.
Publications have not been scanned in their entirety for the purpose
of digitization. To see the full publication please search online or
visit the Clinton Presidential Library's Research Room.
Facing
THE
Facts
A PROGRESS REPORT ON OHIO'S BLACK CHILDREN
Children's Defense Fund-Ohio
NOV-02-1993 14:19 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
TO
94566244 P.03
Fill
Cirt
Children's Defense Fund/Newsweek
National roll of children and Parents
Prinoston Survey Research Associates
Partial Top-line Questionnaire
(October 29, 1993)
N= 426 children aged 10-17 and their parents
Field Period: October 18-27, 1993
Margin of Sampling Error: Plus or minus 5 percentage points.
Partial Top-line Results
1
NOV-02-1993 14:20 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
TO
94566244
P.04
MAIN INTERVIEW FOR PARENTS:
1.
To begin, I will read you a list of some things that
families today might worry about. Please tell me how much
YOU AND YOUR FAMILY worry about each one. First, do you
worry a lot, a little or not at all that..? (READ AND ROTATE
ITEMS) And how much do you worry that
Not
Don't
A lot
A little
at all
Know
s
%
#
s
a.
Your family won't
15
29
56
0 =100
have enough money
to buy food and
clothing
b.
Your family won't
14
32
54
* =100
have enough money
to keep paying
for the place
you live
c.
Your family wan't
28
34
38
0 =100
be able to pay for
medical care if
someone gets sick
d.
Your family won't
8
24
68
0 =100
stay together
e.
Someone in your
23
51
26
* =100
family will be a
victim of violent
crime
f.
Someone in your
14
42
44
* =100
family will get into
trouble with drugs
g.
One of the adults
19
39
42
* =100
who earns money for
your family will
lose his or her job
Partial Top-line Results
2
NOV-02-1993 14:20 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
TO
94566244 P.05
2.
Are ALL the children in your household between the ages of
10 to 17 now covered by any health insurance that helps pay
for medical care?
86
Yes, all covered
14
No, some not covered
*
Don't Know
100
3.
NOW I'd like you to think back to when you, yourself, were a
child between the ages of 10 to 17... Please tell me how
important an influence each of the following was in your
life at that time. (First,) would you say (INSERT ITEMS, IN
ORDER) was/were a VERY important influence, a SOMEWHAT
important influence, or NOT an important influence?
Very
Somewhat
Not
Don't
Important
Important
Important
Know
%
%
of
de
a.
Parents
81
15
4
* =100
b.
Grandparents
46
29
22
3 =100
C.
Other relatives
26
50
23
1 =100
d.
Children
35
44
14
7 =100
your own age
R.
Neighbors
12
44
37
7 =100
f.
Church or the
56
31
13
* =100
place you go
to pray
g.
Teachers
48
43
9
* =100
h.
Community
15
31
52
2 =100
organizations,
like boys' and
girls' clubs
and the "Y"
i.
Television, movies
22
47
30
1 =100
and popular music
Partial Top-line Results
3
NOV-02-1993 14:21 FROM CDF 8TH FL. 662-3580
TO
94566244
P.06
4.
Back on the subject of your family life today Do you
think parents and children in your family now spend about
the RIGHT AMOUNT of time together, TOO MUCH time, or TOO
LITTLE time?
46
Right amount
3
Too much
51
Too little
*
Don't Know
100
5.
When your children grow up, do you think they will be better
off financially than you are now, worse off or about the
same?
41
Better off
15
Worse off
40
About the same
4
Don't know
100
6.
Overall, how would you rate the quality of education in the
schools your children now attend? Would you say.
25
Excellent
49
Good
20
only fair
5
or poor?
2
Not attending school/
Doesn't apply
*
Don't Know
100
Partial Top-line Results
4
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7.
After I read you six choices, tell ne which ONE you think is
the best way to improve the quality of education in your
children's schools.
33
Smaller classes
24
More discipline in the classroom
19
Better teachers
10
More textbooks and equipment
6
A longer school year
4
Better school security
2
other (VOLUNTEERED)
1
Not attending school/Doesn't apply (VOLUNTHERED)
1
Don't Know
100
8.
On another topic...Do think there is too much violence
(INSERT ITEMS. ROTATE START) today, or not?
Don't
Yes
No
Know
t
$
w
a.
On television
89
9
2
b.
In movies
90
9
1
9.
Over the last two years, would you say the amount of violent
crime in your community has
52
Increased
2
Decreased
45
Or stayed about the same?
1
Don't Know
100
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NOV-02-1993 14:22 FROM CDF 8TH FL. 662-3580
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P.08
10. We'd like to know how safe you feel your children are from
violent crime in each of the following places. (First), in
general, do you feel your children are VERY safe, SOMEWHAT
safe or NOT safe from violent crime.
Very
Somewhat
Not
Don't
safe
Safe
Safe
Know
%
%
&
s
a.
At home at night
83
17
*
w
b.
When walking in
34
54
10
2
your neighborhood
after dark
c.
When traveling
57
39
3
1
to school
d.
At school
46
50
3
1
11. After I read you four choices, tell me which ONE you think
is BEST way to keep children in your community safe from
violent crime.
34
More afterschool programs
32
More police and law enforcement
17
More restrictive gun laws
9
More drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs
4
Other
4
Don't Know
100
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12. How would you rate the quality of afterschool or summer
programs for children in your community? Would you say...
10
Excellent
35
Good
28
Only fair
12
Poor
10
or are there no such programs?
5
Don't Know
100
D1. Finally, I have just a few background questions for
statistical purposes only. Which of the following best
describes the place where you live now. Is it... (READ)
11
A large city
28
A suburb near a large city
34
A small city or town, or
27
A rural area?
100
D2. How many children in your household are between the ages of
10 to 17?
[ASKED FOR DEMOGRAPHIC WEIGHTING ONLY]
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D3. Are you now employed full-time, part-time, or are you not
employed for pay?
67
Full-time
13
Part-time
18
Not employed
1
Retired
1
Disabled
100
D4. Are you now married, LIVING AS married, or not married?
85
Married
2
Living as married
13
Not married
100
D5. Is your husband/wife/partner now employed full-time, part-
time, or not employed for pay? [BASED ON THOSE MARRIED OR
LIVING AS MARRIED]
64
Full-time
10
Part-time
13
Not employed
1
Retired
12
Disabled
100
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NOV-02-1993 14:23 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
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D6. Last year, that is in 1992, what was your total family
income from all sources, before taxes? Just stop me when I
get to the right category.
6
Less than $10,000
10
$10,000 to under $20,000
18
$20,000 to under $30,000
33
$30,000 to under $50,000
17
$50,000 to under $75,000
10
$75,000 or more
2
Don't know (DO NOT READ)
4
Refused (DO NOT READ)
100
D7.
What is your age?
5
30 and under
44
31-40
40
41-50
10
Over 50
1
Undesignated
100
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DB. What is the last grade or class that you completed in
school?
3
None, or grade 1 to 8
12
High school incomplete (Grades 9 - 11)
39
High school graduate (Grade 12)
3
Business, technical or vocational school after high
school
22
Some college, no four-year degree
12
College graduate, four-year degree
9
Post-graduate or professional schooling, after college
100
D9. IF MARRIED OR LIVING AS MARRIED (CODES 1-2 IN D4): What is
the last grade or class that your husband/wife/partner
completed in school? (DO NOT READ)
3
None, or grade 1 to 8
8
High school incomplete (Grades 9 - 11)
35
High school graduate (Grade 12)
2
Business, technical or vocational school after high
school
19
Some college, no four-year degree
13
College graduate, four-year degree
7
Post-graduate or professional schooling. after college
13
Refused
100
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NOV-02-1993 14:24 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
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94566244
P.13
D10. Are you of Hispanic or Latino background, such as Mexican,
Puerto Rican, Cuban, or other Spanish background?
3
Yes
97
NO
100
D11. What is your race? Are you white, black, Asian, or some
other race?
84
White
12
Black or African-American
1
Asian
3
Other or mixed race
100
D13. Could you please tell me this child's first name? (ENTER
NAME) Is (INSERT CHILD'S NAME) a boy or girl?
51
Boy
49
Girl
100
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NOV-02-1993
14:24
FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
TO
94566244
P.14
D14. What is (INSERT CHILD'S NAME)'s exact age in years?
13
10 years old
14
11 years old
14
12 years old
12
13 years old
12
14 years old
12
15 years old
11
16 years old
11
17 years old
1
9
Refused
100
D15. Including yourself, how many of (INSERT CHILD'S NAME) 's
natural or biological parents now live in your household...
44
Both
56
One, or
0
Neither?
0
Don't Know
100
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NOV-02-1993 14:24 FROM CDF 8TH FL. .662-3580
TO
94566244 P.15
CHILDREN'S INTERVIEW:
1.
To begin, I will read you a list of some things that
families today might worry about. Please tell me how much
YOU AND YOUR FAMILY worry about each one. First, do you
worry a lot, a little or not at all that..? (READ AND ROTATE
ITEMS) And how much do you worry that.
Not
Don't
A lot
A little
at all
Know
q
%
or
of
a.
Your family won't
have enough money
to buy food and
clothing
Parents:
15
29
56
0 =100
Children:
19
25
56
0 =100
b.
Your family won't
have enough money to
keep paying for the
place you live
Parents:
14
32
54
* =100
Children:
19
25
56
0 =100
c.
Your family won't
be able to pay for
medical care if
someone gets sick
Parents:
28
34
38
0 =100
Children:
20
31
49
* =100
d.
Your family won't
stay together
Parents:
8
24
68
0 =100
Children:
20
19
61
0 =100
e.
Someone in your
family will be a
victim of
violent crime
Parents:
23
51
26
* =100
Children:
25
31
44
0 =100
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Not
Don't
A lot
A little
at all
Know
4
-
z
%
£.
Someone in your
family will get
into trouble with
drugs
Parents:
14
42
44
* = =100
Children:
20
17
63
0 =100
g.
One of the grown
-ups who earns money
for your family will
lose his or her job
Parents:
19
39
42
* =100
Children:
23
32
45
* =100
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NOV-02-1993 14:25 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
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2.
Please tell де how important an influence each of the
following is in your life today. (First,) would you say
(INSERT ITEMS, IN ORDER) is/are a VERY important influence,
a SOMEWHAT important influence, or NOT an important
influence?
Very
Somewhat
Not
Don't
Important
Important
Important
Know
%
%
%
s
a.
Parents
Parents*:
81
15
4
* =100
Children:
85
14
1
# =100
b.
Crandparents
Parents*:
46
29
22
3 =100
Children:
54
33
12
1 =100
C.
Other relatives
Parents*:
26
50
23
1 =100
Children:
38
47
14
1 =100
d.
Children
your own age
*
Parents*:
35
44
14
7 =100
Children:
42
43
11
4 =100
e.
Neighbors
Parents*:
12
44
37
7 =100
Children:
13
41
42
4 =100
f.
Church or the
place you
go to pray
Parents*:
56
31
13
* =100
Children:
56
27
16
1 =100
g.
Teachers
Parents*:
48
43
9
* =100
Children:
51
40
9
w -100
h.
Community
organizations,
like boys' and
girls' clubs
and the "Y"
Parents*:
15
31
52
2 =100
Children:
22
40
36
2 =100
i.
Television, movies
and popular music
Parents*:
22
47
30
1 =100
Children:
23
44
33
o =100
*Parents were asked to rate how much they were influenced by each
group when they were the same age their children are today.
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NOV-02-1993 14:25 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
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P.18
3.
Do you think parents and children in your family now spend
about the RIGHT AMOUNT of time together, TOO MUCH time, or
TOO LITTLE time?
Children
Parents
t
%
65
Right amount
46
4
Too much
3
31
Too little
51
*
Don't Know
*
100
100
4.
When you grow up, do you think you will be better off
financially than your parents are now, worse off or about
the same?
Children
Parents
%
%
31
Better off
11
3
Worse off
15
63
About the same
40
3
Don't Know
4
100
100
5.
overall, how would you rate the quality of education in your
school? Would you say...
Children
Parents
#
de
28
Excellent
25
47
Good
49
20
Only fair
20
4
or poor?
5
*
Not attending school/
1
Doesn't apply
1
Don't Know
*
100
100
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NOV-02-1993 14:26 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
TO
94566244 P.19
9.
We'd like to know about your experiences with some different
types of crime. As I read each one, tell me if it ever
happened to YOU personally, if you ever saw it happen to
SOMEONE ELSE, or if you KNOW SOMEONE who was a victim of
this type of crime. (First,) how about.. (INSERT ITEMS.
START WITH "=") Has this ever happened to you, did you see
it happen or do you know someone who was a victim? Next,
how about...
Saw
No
Someone
Personal
Self
Else
Know a
Experience
Don't
a Victim
Victimized
Victim
Knowledge
Know
E
t
%
%
%
a.
Having money
27
9
33
31
0
or property
stolen
h. Being
4
3
18
75
0
threatened
by someone
with a gun
C. Being
6
6
16
72
0
threatened
by someone
with a knife
or weapon other
than a gun
d.
Being shot
*
3
15
82
0
with a gun
e. Being
9
15
23
53
0
attacked or
beaten up
10. Have you, yourself, ever handled a real pistol or a handgun
without a grown-up around to supervise?
11
Yes,
89
No
0
Don't Know
100
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NOV-02-1993 14:26 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
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94566244 P.20
6.
After I read you six choices, tell ne which ONE you think is
school. the best way to improve the quality of education in your
Children
Parents
s
t
24
Smaller classes
33
21
More discipline
24
in the classroom
21
More textbooks and equipment
10
19
Better teachers
19
8
Better school security
4
5
A longer school year
6
*
Other
2
*
Not attending school/
1
Doesn't apply
2
Don't Know
1
100
100
7.
On another topic... Do think there is too much violence
(INSERT ITEMS. ROTATE START) today, or not?
Don't
Yes
No
Know
-
H
t
a.
On television
Parents:
89
9
2 =100
Children:
60
39
1 =100
b.
In movies
Parents:
90
9
1 =100
Children:
63
36
1 =100
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NOV-02-1993 14:27 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
TO
94566244 P.21
8.
We'd like to know how safe you feel from violent crime in
each or the following places. (First), in general, do you
feel VERY safe, SOMEWHAT safe or NOT safe from violent
crime,
very
Somewhat
Not
Don't
Safe
Safe
Safe
Know
%
#
n
%
a.
At home at night
Parents:
83
17
*
* =100
Children:
75
23
2
0 =100
b.
When walking in
your neighborhood
after dark
Parents:
34
54
10
2 =100
Children:
37
43
18
2 =100
C.
When traveling
to school
Parents:
57
39
3
1 =100
Children:
74
23
2
1 =100
d.
At school
Parents:
46
50
3
1 =100
Children:
69
27
4
0 -100
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NOV-02-1993 14:27 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
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94566244 P.22
14. Thinking back to yesterday (If INTERVIEW CONDUCTED ON SUNDAY
OR MONDAY, CHANGE "YESTERDAY" TO "FRIDAY"), from the time
you got home from school to the time you went to sleep,
about how many hours did you spend watching television?
14
None
13
Less than 1 hour
42
1-2 hours
22
3-4 hours
6
5-6 hours
1
7-8 hours
1
More than 8 hours
1
Don't Know
100
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NOV-02-1993 14:28 FROM CDF 8TH FL.662-3580
TO
94566244
P.23
11. If you, yourself, wanted to buy or borrow a pistol or
handgun, would you know where to go for it?
33
Yes
66
NO
1
Don't Know
100
12. Have you, or has someone you know, ever brought a pistol or
a handgun to school?
1
Yes, self
18
Yes, someone else -- not self
81
No
*
Don't Know
100
13. I have just two more questions
Are you NOW in any regular
afterschool program, or not?
44
Yes
56
No
0
Don't Know
100
Partial Top-line Results
20
TOTAL P.23