We need to stop this media circus of “Whoopee! Look what we found in the ghetto.” Certainly there were 19 children found in a West Side apartment who have been deprived of a basic right to be clean and clothed, to rest in beds with linen, to go to sleep and not be hungry.
Is the media hoopla to be an end in itself; is the removal of the children from the family unit to be the same? Or might there possibily be more done to save these children, these families and their community? Could this not be a catalyst to establish a network to catch families and children on the edge of depression, neglect, substance abuse and child abuse?
Now Mayor Daley, Gov. Edgar, Vice President Gore and President Clinton, now that you have found this travesty that some might describe as a dysfunctional family, what are you willing to do to save these children, these families and this community? Will each of you continue to be angry, devastated, disgusted, outraged and taken aback, or will you now become proactive rather than reactive in regard to the welfare of children?
What are you really willing to do to solve America’s problem in how its children are treated? The true tragedy is that neglected, abused, near-homeless and homeless children and families can be found all over this country in rural and urban settings. Care to take a look?
Will any one of you declare that on this day you will allocate funding and find a funding source to care for our youth, or to win the war against drugs, against poverty, against ignorance? Taking a stand requires a commitment; it is commitment these children and others like them need, not rhetoric.
Oh, excuse me. Time for a reality check. It is politically correct to abhor such situations, but to commit one’s self to a solution, to insure that each one of those 19 children, plus all children, receive an adequate education, to provide a realistic funding level for education and appropriate social programs, are not correct political choices.
Will they receive proper counseling as individuals and a family group with followup monitoring? What will the youngest child’s legacy be? Can we provide enough support services that will make them productive citizens, 20 years from now?
How do we find funds to build transitional housing for these families so that their housing is not substandard, or provide the services that will teach them to be self-sufficient in the greater society? Do we continue with business as usual and spend up to $35,000 per year to punish the mothers and put each one in jail rather than spending substantially less to educate our populace?
I guess that we all know that nothing of any significance will come of the media reporting on the occurrences on Keystone Avenue. The governor will spend another $1 million to study whether we need another airport in the outlands; the mayor will start another failed project; the vice president will make speeches and go to funerals, and the president will continue to be the best used car salesman I’ve ever seen. Finally, we will continue to ignore the basic needs of children and the poor.
