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OCR Page 1 of 14First Lady Videotaping
Juvenile Justice Conference
Good Morning, and welcome to this important conference -- Juvenile Justice: A Focus on
the Future. I want to thank the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
for convening this meeting
and I want to thank each of you for what you do for our nation's
children every day. The state of the juvenile justice system and how we provide justice to
children is a critical issues facing our country not only because of its impact on public safety,
but because of its implications for the welfare of our children.
We face a new century and the 100th anniversary of the juvenile court with an
unprecedented opportunity to reaffirm the Nation's commitment to children. At the same time,
recent incidents have placed the changing nature of children's violence in the forefront of the
Nation's conscience. These crosscurrents provides us with an opportunity to evaluate new ways
to reinvigorate the juvenile courts, strengthen families and support the development of healthy
children and safe communities.
In taking on the challenge, we are armed with a tremendous body of knowledge on how
to treat juveniles in the justice system and how to prevent delinquency in the first place. We've
learned that comprehensive strategies that balance real accountability and treatment for those
who commit acts of violence, with prevention measures that keep our children on the right track
are really working in community after community.
We know that must effectively reach at-risk children and youth before they take their first
step into crime. Nurse home visitation, family strengthening, and constructive opportunities for
youth to learn and grow -- like after school programs and job training -- are essential to keeping
children on the right track. But our efforts must also deal effectively with youth in trouble --
targeting gang activity, gun violence and drugs -- with law enforcement and court-based
programs that keep our communities safe.
Now -- to significantly reduce this country's levels of youth violence and victimization --
we must take these strategies that are working to scale. And the Federal Government, through
OJJDP, is your partner in this effort by gathering information on what is working and
translating it into assistance to communities.
I applaud all of you for what we have accomplished thus far; and I encourage you to
continue to apply the research to obtain real results
and advocate for a sustained investment
in children, families and communities. I know your commitment, skills and knowledge, will
only lead to greater success in keeping our children safe. Thank you.
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