Are we caring for the least of these? This is the question I constantly ask myself. Our church sits in one of the poorest wards of the District of Columbia and I often minister to men and women returning home from prison. It is our mission as a congregation to…
Archives: Voices
Gasping for Support
Living in poverty can be hazardous to your health in many respects – more incidences of violence, less access to quality grocery stores, and few safe places to exercise, just to name a few. Previous studies have shown those living in poverty also breathe dirtier air. Regular exposure to air…
Head Smacker: If You Aint Cheating, You Aint Trying
“If you aint cheating, you aint trying.” That’s what a currency trader at Barclays Bank shared in an online chat room about criminal currency manipulation. Those words to live by have resulted in four mammoth banks pleading guilty to federal collusion charges. They will pay fines of $5.6 billion. That’s…
Celebrate 50 years of Head Start with an #EarlyEdChat
Head Start is celebrating its 50th birthday! Join us and other advocates for the weekly #EarlyEdChat to celebrate this important milestone for the Head Start program. On May 21st at 2pm ET, MomsRising and special guest National Head Start Association will kick off a tweetchat via the #EarlyEdChat hashtag. Come and share your questions, stories, resources,…
Fact of the Week: Nearly One in Four Children in the U.S. is Served by the Federal Child Support Program
In Idaho, the proportion of children relying on Child Support Services is even higher – 28 percent. Many in the state learned that the hard way this week, as Idaho’s state legislature held an unusual special session to take up legislation to prevent the state from losing access to federal child…
Human Needs Report: Appropriations showdowns looming and TANF reform
CHN just released our latest edition of the Human Needs Report, our regular newsletter on national policy issues affecting low-income and vulnerable populations. This edition includes articles on looming appropriations showdowns and proposals to reform TANF that would help (and hurt) recipients. See below for the full analysis and links to each…
What Portion of Our Collective Wealth Are We Willing to Invest So That People Can Succeed?
This post was originally published by The Huffington Post on May 14, 2015. That is the question President Obama posed at a Georgetown University Catholic-Evangelical Summit on Overcoming Poverty on May 12. It was a fascinating discussion – not least because it was a discussion, with the President exchanging views…
10 Ideas to Save the Economy (in Easy-to-Understand Videos)
No one who works full-time should live in poverty. And no one should have to choose between providing for their family and being a good parent. To raise awareness and inform the debate around these and other important issues, MoveOn and Robert Reich recently launched a new campaign,”The Big Picture: 10…
Native American Youth Advocating for Their Own
The odds were stacked against Shilo Valle. Born into poverty with parents who struggled with drug and alcohol addictions, Shilo was placed in foster care. He changed foster care placements 9 times, including stays at treatment centers, group homes, and juvenile detention facilities because they were the only beds available…
Fact of the Week: 21 Million Moms Benefit from Low-income Tax Credits
Mother’s Day is just around the corner. It’s a day when we honor moms all around the country with cards, flowers, and small tokens of our thanks for all they do. A more practical way to show appreciation for millions of low-income moms, however, would be to make sure they’re economically…
Roadmaps to Opportunity and Budget Roadblocks
“These budgets massively disinvest in the country, and then they shred the social safety net… That is actually a recipe for putting a lot more people into poverty and eliminating opportunity.” – House Budget Committee Ranking Member Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) I listened to Rep. Van Hollen make this comment…
Americans Low Savings Rate A Bad Sign for Good Economy
This post was originally published on The Fiscal Times on April 26. We’re supposed to be enjoying an economic recovery since the Great Recession of 2008-2009 – yet many economists have questioned whether the last five years have been much of a “recovery.” Judging from the mood of the American…