"How are the children?" is the traditional greeting among the Masai people of Africa.
If we asked ourselves that question as the people of Wisconsin right now, we would get a disturbing answer.
About two weeks ago, there was a startling new report about poverty in Wisconsin. In 2016, while we heard glowing reports of "record low unemployment" and "the best economy in decades," the rate of children living in poverty in Wisconsin INCREASED by 20%. (See article from Madison.com)
That's right. It is not just that poor families are not sharing in prosperity. Things have actually gotten worse for the poorest people among us. And, the fastest growing group of new poor people were children.
Perhaps the most disturbing part of this story is that it didn't even make the headlines. Other than a couple of very brief newspaper articles, it seems not to have been much noticed. There were no editorials. There were no protests. Most of us didn't even hear about it.
This should be big news, and we should be alarmed. The End Child Poverty Campaign is all about Wisconsin claiming the well-being of all our children as a top priority. No one should be able to claim that our state is headed in the right direction at the same time that more and more of our kids are left behind.
If you have not already done so, please go to www.endchildpovertywi.org and add your name to the people who have endorsed the goal of reducing child poverty in our state. If you have signed already, please take a minute to invite a few friends and neighbors to do the same. Ask people at your place of worship next weekend to sign on.
Our political leaders, of all parties, need to see that the well-being of all our children is a top priority for Wisconsinites, Imagine a day when every election, every session of the legislature, every community meeting and every worship service began by asking, "How are the children?"
About two weeks ago, there was a startling new report about poverty in Wisconsin. In 2016, while we heard glowing reports of "record low unemployment" and "the best economy in decades," the rate of children living in poverty in Wisconsin INCREASED by 20%. (See article from Madison.com)
That's right. It is not just that poor families are not sharing in prosperity. Things have actually gotten worse for the poorest people among us. And, the fastest growing group of new poor people were children.
Perhaps the most disturbing part of this story is that it didn't even make the headlines. Other than a couple of very brief newspaper articles, it seems not to have been much noticed. There were no editorials. There were no protests. Most of us didn't even hear about it.
This should be big news, and we should be alarmed. The End Child Poverty Campaign is all about Wisconsin claiming the well-being of all our children as a top priority. No one should be able to claim that our state is headed in the right direction at the same time that more and more of our kids are left behind.
If you have not already done so, please go to www.endchildpovertywi.org and add your name to the people who have endorsed the goal of reducing child poverty in our state. If you have signed already, please take a minute to invite a few friends and neighbors to do the same. Ask people at your place of worship next weekend to sign on.
Our political leaders, of all parties, need to see that the well-being of all our children is a top priority for Wisconsinites, Imagine a day when every election, every session of the legislature, every community meeting and every worship service began by asking, "How are the children?"
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