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To effectively end child poverty, the government needs to formulate a clear plan with measurable goals and engage various stakeholders. This includes boosting family incomes, providing affordable child care, preparing children for school, and improving family supports like public housing and job training. Drawing inspiration from successful initiatives in England and efforts undertaken by states like Minnesota and Connecticut, America can leverage its ability to tackle challenges and make ending child poverty a priority. By adopting ambitious plans and taking decisive action, we can create a brighter future for our children.

Wow, Barbara, I'm surprised you have such strong words, considering you are the mother of Clara Holloway. Or at least she says you are.

You said "I believe each person must take responsibility for themselves" and " . . . giving them a hand, not a hand-out!"

She doesn't even try to hide what she did to her ex-boyfriend. In fact she seems quite proud of herself.

Why don't you tell your daughter to pay her debt?

Poverty in America has become big business. In the name of "poverty" there are billions of dollars allocated to program after program that fails miserably to make an impact on improving lives of children and families. Very little of the monies allocated ever reach the family or child that needs it - and that that does trickle down only helps to keep them where they are!! The money goes to set-up government agency after government agency (when one would do) and pay rediculous salaries & expense accounts to the "administrators" .
Also, there is no accountability - not on the part of these "agencies" or the parents!! Yes, there are many parents who struggle and really try to provide for their families - but there are many more who DO NOT! They take whatever money, aide, food stamps, etc. they get and use it for everything else BUT taking care of their children!!! I believe each person must take responsibility for themselves - there are too many people depending on & blaming the "government" on their lot it life! We have become a nation dependant on welfare, and we are digging our hole deeper every day.
Every person living in this country has an opportunity for an education - at least a high school diploma, and if they work hard and apply themselves maybe a scholarship to college!! Again, "the government" cannot crawl inside their brain and do the work for them - but our schools can instill in every child a sense of hope, show them how to succeed - if not with a college degree, a good, honest tradesmanship. Students from low income families learn instead, how to use the system, how to get on welfare, how to get something for nothing - and that is where they and their children and their children's children stay.
I have seen so many parents go to the welfare office just to get a little help and they are told if you have a job - we can't help you - but if you give up your job you can get the moon!!! I see parents driving a Mercedes, dressing to the hilt - who have full assistance with child care - whose children come to my Center hungry & dirty,
who have never seen a dentist, and the parent won't even provide diapers for them. Then there are others just barely able to make ends meet but their children are clean and loved and the parent provides for them first, drive run-down cars, and know how to squeeze a penny - yet they can't get any assistance.
Our system is so out of balance, I believe the only way we will ever get it straight is to wipe it out completely and start over again - but this time with real goals & a vision for self-reliance, accountability on all fronts, educating parents on being parents/giving them a hand, not a hand-out!
"Give a man a fish and he will eat for one day, teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime."
Barbara Holloway
Founder/Owner/Director since 1980
Mansfield Children's Center, Inc.
Mansfield, TX

YES,TELL THE PEOPLE IN HOLLYWOOD TO DO FOR THE CHILDREN IN AMERICA AS MUCH AS THEY ARE DOING FOR CHILDREN ELSEWHERE..

A related thought: The effort (e.g. NCLB)to "correct the deficiencies" of the public schools is an educational solution to a social problem. For the most part, our educational systems cannot function in the way they know they should given the kind of population they have to serve.

We will not decrease poverty in the US until we come to grips with the fact that we define poverty by family income, but we have no goal to increase family income. Even Head Start, our anti-poverty program for young children and the only one that tries to help parents
join the workforce, is not successful in finding well-paying jobs for parents. Improving parents' income is not on our radar screen for helping the poor to become non-poor. Our help comes to families that are poor and stay poor. At best, we allow them to be almost poor. Why is it that even though both parents and their government know that poverty is bad - even disastrous- for children and families, we set
no goals for our child care help to result in some percentage of families that move out of poverty over time. Why is it that even though we know that continuity of relationships is essential for
very young children, we have no principle of continuity that would prevent us from terminating or moving a child, after we have given them trust?