tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2127555222635104712024-03-15T17:20:21.622-07:00Social Welfare Policy and Macro PracticeThe social welfare policy class at the University of Illinois uses this blog to discuss social welfare policies.Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.comBlogger357125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-8297829060470076252024-03-15T17:19:00.000-07:002024-03-15T17:19:25.399-07:00Growing Old in America<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <span style="font-family: Calibri;">The baby boomers are growing older and starting to enter the Social Security age range. Social Security doesn’t pay enough to cover all living expenses. The costs of housing are rising, as well as the costs of everything else. Unfortunately, the pay is not increasing to meet the costs of living. As you age it becomes harder to do things for yourself and to maintain a household. This requires additional help which costs additional money. Ideally by the time you reach the age of eligibility to draw Social Security, you should have your home paid off. However, that is not the case for most Americans. Many of the boomer population that I know still owe tens of thousands on their mortgages or they rent or have lot rent. Lot rent on a trailer park has gone up, and is now the price of what rent for a one-bedroom apartment used to be. The costs associated with maintaining a mobile home are also high, and typically don’t qualify for any type of repair assistance through local home maintenance programs sometimes available to older adults. For those that own their homes and still owe a mortgage it’s nearly impossible to pay the mortgage on the wage of social security. If you add a job to supplement the income, it can cause you to make too much money, and rules and case managers will subsequently decrease your benefits.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Medical costs are also obnoxious. As you grow older, more health issues come out, and you typically require more medications, more appointments, and more assistance. These are all costly, so insurance is important. There is a gap in coverage with Medicare, and the costs of Medigap coverage can be out of reach for many people. I know some people who, in lean months, must choose between paying a bill or eating or paying for their medications or paying the mortgage. It’s a tough situation without much room for any change.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Many people who receive Social Security are considered “over income” for SNAP benefits., and if they do qualify, they don’t receive nearly enough to be able to make ends meet each month. Many of our senior citizens rely on the food pantry for assistance each month. Our food pantries are a great resource, but typically only help a limited number of times per month. There also aren’t usually many choices for someone who has health conditions that require a special diet. This leaves many of the aging population in a tough place.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The government has a responsibility to provide for its citizens, especially to those who have worked most of their lives to help pay taxes, etc and are no longer physically able to. Our country needs to do something different to help fill these gaps.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The Baby Boomers are about 60 to 78 years-old. Probably most have retired by now, but no doubt a sizable minority of them still haven’t started collecting their Social Security or Medicare benefits.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>My generation is 44 to 59 years-old, but there aren’t very many of us.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span class="s1" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a href="https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/this-is-the-average-age-most-americans-become-mortgage-free#">About 37% of the population 65 or older is still </a></span><span class="s2">paying off a mortgage.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I wonder why Congress and the White House aren’t trying to raise the payroll tax to 7% (14% including employer contributions) from the 6.2% (12.4%) people currently pay into Social Security. The trust fund is rapidly depleted each year as expenditures for benefits exceed payroll tax collections by hundreds of billions, and in less than ten years, when the Social Security Trust Fund is exhausted, we will suddenly need to choose between a much steeper increase in the withholding tax, a significant (a quarter to a third) drop in benefits paid out, or a sudden increase in the budget deficit to cover the gap that the trust fund has been covering.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">You mention that Social Security benefits are not very generous.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Yeah, I think average monthly benefits are about $1,800 these days.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>So, for most retired workers, the Social Security benefits are giving them about 37% of what they had been earning before retirement (see <a href="https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/NOTES/ran9/an2023-9.pdf"><span class="s3">this report</span></a>). So, consider that for about 40 to 45 years workers (and their employers) are paying about 12.4% of their incomes into Social Security, and then for 15 to 25 years in retirement they are getting about 37% of their former income back. Also,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Your essay got me thinking about the Baby Boomer generation.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>The Census Bureau says they were born between the summers of 1946 and 1964. Curiously, those of us in Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980) do not include those born in late 1964.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>So, what about people born in late 1964?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Are they neither Baby Boomers nor Generation X? <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Also, what was the best song by Generation X? Was it “Kiss Me Deadly”? Or, more likely, “Your Generation”?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>And, since Billy Idol, (the toxic singer frontman of Generation X) was born in 1955, and his song is clearly a response to “My Generation” by The Who, whose members were mostly born before 1946 and are thus members of “The Silent Generation” rather than Baby Boomers, then isn’t the band “Generation X” really a Boomer band and their rebellion against the rock’n’roll of the 1960s an attack on the Silent Generation rather than the Boomers?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Also, which band is better, “The Millennials” or “Generation X” or “Generation Y”? Generation Y seems to play emo metal.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Generation X was a punk band, or new-wave, or something close to those genres. The Millennials do lots of covers of classic rock.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> I guess the answer depends upon musical genre preferences.</span></span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-36745785744138081982023-12-19T22:26:00.000-08:002023-12-19T22:26:23.470-08:00Description of Bill to provide Overdose Prevention Sites<p> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Illinois Senate Bill 78 is coming up for deliberation in the Illinois Senate, and I wanted to write you to inform you of the implications of the bill, as seen from the results of previous facilities of the same sort in other parts of the county and continent. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Bill 78 would allow for Overdose Prevention Sites to be established. In some places, they are called Safe Consumption Sites. These facilities are part of a Harm Reduction Initiative to get intravenous drug users off the street and into a place where they can have access to clean and safe materials for using, such as clean needles and clean water, and people around to monitor them and administer oxygen or naloxone in the event of an overdose. These facilities would be placed in areas where there is already a high rate of drug use. The purpose of these facilities is not only to help people with drug addictions, but also to help the communities where they live. By providing clean needles and safe disposal, safe consumption sites reduce the amount of used needles found littered in high-traffic areas. The provision of clean needles would reduce the number of HIV transmissions, which costs the state over $300,000 per diagnosis, and reduce Hepatitis C transmissions, which costs over $30,000 per diagnosis. There hasn’t been a single overdose death within a OPS facility. It would also serve as a resource center for people who are seeking treatment, and they would provide referrals to local treatment centers.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Many people are, understandably, going to be wary of building such a facility where we would be allowing drug users to use their substances without fear of consequence. Also, surely people don’t want these facilities being built in their communities and attracting drug abusers to the area. In reference to the first objection, while they would be allowing people to use without (as much) fear of death or of legal consequence, it’s been proven that those consequences don’t stop people who are already addicted from using a substance. Also, these facilities have shown an increase in addicts seeking treatment and recovery. As for the second objection, these facilities won’t be built in areas that don’t already have a serious problem with drug use. They would be taking the people and the related litter off the streets, making them safer, and cleaner, and providing resources to addicts to help them find recovery. A recent case study showed that 75% of addicts and alcoholics do eventually find recovery, they just have to live long enough to get there.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space">For more information, consider a review of the recent history of drug policy available without cost on the internet in the paper by Ximene Rego and associates from 2021: </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><a href="https://substanceabusepolicy.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13011-021-00394-7" target="_blank">https://substanceabusepolicy.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13011-021-00394-7 </a></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">And see this article from 2021 hosted on a website of an advocacy group that is trying to encourage more places to follow the Portuguese model:</span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><a href="https://transformdrugs.org/blog/drug-decriminalisation-in-portugal-setting-the-record-straight">https://transformdrugs.org/blog/drug-decriminalisation-in-portugal-setting-the-record-straight</a></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br /></span></span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-56310400270836587512023-12-19T22:11:00.000-08:002023-12-19T22:11:53.957-08:00Student describes student loan forgiveness attempts<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> <span style="text-indent: 36px;">The issue on student debt has always been a concern for many Americans today. In response this being that President Biden mentioned giving out a $20,000 loan-forgiveness in student debt relief around the time of his campaign. But afterwards the supreme court struck down this policy in late 2022. But so far, the administration’s officials are coming up with a new plan under the higher education act hopefully canceling student debt by 2024.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="text-indent: 36px;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 36px;">And if this does happen, many former students would find it very beneficial, and we would all most likely enjoy an improvement in the economy.</span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This policy would be life changing for many that are still stuck paying off student debt that should’ve been taken care of. As for those in support, Senators Cory Booker and <a href="https://www.menendez.senate.gov/newsroom/press/sens-menendez-and-booker-join-senate-and-house-colleagues-in-urging-president-biden-to-swiftly-deliver-student-loan-debt-cancellation-for-43-million-americans#:~:text=Full%20text%20of%20the%20letter,from%20crushing%20student%20loan%20debt."><span class="s1" style="color: blue; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">Bob Menendez</span></a> were among 87 lawmakers who, in August of 2023 wrote “We are extremely disappointed and concerned that the Supreme Court substituted politics for the rule of law to deny as many as 43 million hard-working Americans life-changing relief from crushing student loan debt…”.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Also, on May 12, 2023, in Washington, DC there was also a group of loan-borrowers that showed up to the white house, ordering that Biden should urgently cancel student debt. All this showed that there were many that were looking forward to this plan succeeding. Not only this, but also allowing the student debt relief plan to take place would allow for borrowers to spend money on other areas. Following debt forgiveness, statistics on wealth and spending would allow us to see what groups benefitted from this plan. The policy would also allow for narrowing the racial wealth gap among people.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">As for the criticisms that may cause some to oppose this plan: it could be unfair to those that don’t have debt or already paid off their debt. This is understandable because the main target audience for this plan is for the loan-borrowers. And it makes you wonder about where this helps the other percent of Americans that don’t have anything to do with this plan. For example, some people may have saved money every month for many years to prepare for when their children would be ready to go to college, while other households with even higher incomes may not have saved anything at all, and then just taken out loans when their children went to college. Paying off everyone’s loans would penalize the households that had cut their consumption so they could afford college with little or no debt for their children, and would reward households that failed to prepare for the expense. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Speaking of not including everything, this plan does not address the crippling costs of college which could be added. That is, if students can get loans, then schools can raise the costs of attending, certain that their students will be able to get loans and grants to pay whatever fees and tuition they decide to charge.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Another reason why this could possibly be an issue is that it could cause people to take advantage of the system and influence those to take on more loans in the future.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>But some of these issues can be fixed with a bit of modifications to this plan. One thing that is a bit concerning is the cost and inflation concern of this action. Because what everyone is seeing is how it will cause many of Americans to be loan free, but what those don’t see is how much spending is going on here for this program, and excessive government spending could contribute to inflation.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This plan originally applies to federal student loan borrowers, The White House site stated “income-driven repayment (IDR) plan that calculates payments based on a borrower’s income and family size – not their loan balance – and forgives remaining balances after a certain number of years. The SAVE plan will cut many borrowers’ monthly payments to zero, will save other borrowers around $1,000 per year, will prevent balances from growing because of unpaid interest, and will get more borrowers closer to forgiveness faster.”. Making it more efficient for those with student loans and providing breathing room for families.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>As for when it comes to income, the student aid site stated “To smooth the transition back to repayment and help borrowers at highest risk of delinquencies or default once payments resume, the U.S. Department of Education will provide up to $20,000 in debt relief to Pell Grant recipients with loans held by the Department of Education and up to $10,000 in debt relief to non-Pell Grant recipients. Borrowers are eligible for this relief if their individual income is less than $125,000 or $250,000 for households.”<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Also the website mentioned that individuals working for nonprofit, military, government, federal, state, tribal, or local level may qualify for complete loan forgiveness through the public service loan forgiveness program (PSLF).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Seeing what it takes to qualify shows that there is room for a variety of individuals to receive this plan.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Altogether, this policy is very complex and is not an easy one to have solutions for. There still needs to be some final adjustments overall for there to be improvements in not just the loan-borrower but the economy altogether. Student loan forgiveness is beneficial for students that have been stuck paying loans off instead of using money for other things.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>It would have a major influence on those that want to go to college but can’t. However, it also raises questions about what the outcome would be from this. How would this affect the economy, and would it do harm or do good things?</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p><h4 style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;">Reference</h4><p class="p4" style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="s2" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a href="https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement">https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement</a></span></p><p class="p4" style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="s2" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/08/22/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-launches-the-save-plan-the-most-affordable-student-loan-repayment-plan-ever-to-lower-monthly-payments-for-millions-of-borrowers/">https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/08/22/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-launches-the-save-plan-the-most-affordable-student-loan-repayment-plan-ever-to-lower-monthly-payments-for-millions-of-borrowers/</a></span></p><p class="p4" style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="s2" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a href="https://truthout.org/articles/democrats-tell-biden-to-deliver-on-your-promise-of-20000-student-debt-relief/">https://truthout.org/articles/democrats-tell-biden-to-deliver-on-your-promise-of-20000-student-debt-relief/</a></span></p><p class="p4" style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">I realize that you are coming back to academic writing after some years out of college, so I'll work with you more on writing style, but this is really fairly good. You had a lot to cover in this paper. You might have organized the paper along these lines:</span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Opening paragraph about how Biden promised to bring debt relief to persons burdened with debt on student loans, but his methods for doing this were thwarted by a lawsuit brought by the State of Missouri, which gave the Supreme Court an opportunity to say that the White House didn't have the authority to cancel student debt. But, since the Supreme Court's decision, Biden has found other ways to give some debt relief.</span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Then, you would have a paragraph (or two or three) about the problem. People go to universities that are expensive, and they either have never had the financial resources to afford their costs of study, or they have simply not actively saved and planned for college. You might say something about the human right to an education, and whether it applies to some persons who would like to attend a university. You could comment on the costs of study in a university, and discussions of how to keep costs low. The people who go to college and incur the loan debt were not responsible for deciding whether or not to save up for college because they were children without significant income before going to college. Perhaps half of the benefit of people gaining a college education is enjoyed by the wider public, and not merely a benefit to the individual who becomes educated. Student loans are not erased when a person goes through a bankruptcy. Student load debt may have high interest rates. Many people have this debt, and many of them have very high debt where their payments on student loans prevent them from purchasing homes, cars, or starting businesses. </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Then, you would summarize the arguments in favor of eliminating some or all of the student loan debt.</span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Then you would offer a paragraph summarizing the arguments opposing forgiveness of most student loan debt.</span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Then, you would use a paragraph to describe some loan forgiveness programs that have existed for a while. For example, in many cases social workers who pay their student loan debt every billing period without fail for ten years while working as social workers in non-profit or public entities will have remaining student loan debt remaining after 120 payment periods (ten years) wiped away. </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Then, you would have a paragraph about what the Biden administration tried to do.</span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Then, you would have a paragraph about the Supreme Court that blocked it.</span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Then, you would have paragraph about what the Biden administration has been doing to forgive some loans since the Supreme Court case.</span></p><p class="p4" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: trebuchet;">Your eleventh paragraph could be a summary of where things stand now. Maybe look at some polling data to see what attitudes are toward debt forgiveness. Is Biden gaining credit among persons who've had their debts decreased or wiped out? Are Republicans suffering a loss of support for thwarting the loan forgiveness policy? </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-11461508777639865202023-12-19T20:37:00.000-08:002023-12-19T20:37:11.863-08:00Policies supporting services for domestic violence situations<h3 style="text-align: left;"> <b style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-align: center;">Victims of Domestic Violence<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></h3><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">In this paper, I will describe the people who suffer from domestic violence. There are not just women suffering from this, men also suffer from household violence. Social work suggests that society ought to pursue a policy to strengthen relationships, assist with counseling, understand mediation, and apply restorative justice practices, as treating domestic violence primarily as a mental health issue, and only secondarily as a criminal justice issue, offers a better chance to stop this scourge. Domestic violence, as it is associated with poverty and lower educational attainment, disproportionately affects people of color and minority cultural groups. Understanding the laws related to domestic violence, and how those laws may be changing, will help us to support victims of domestic violence. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> In particular, I'm interested in policies concerning domestic violence that offer cash or in-kind assistance to those who are escaping from domestic violence.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><h3 style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b>Victims of Crime Act (VOCA)</b></h3><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">This act is to assist the victims that have suffered from crimes, it and helps them restore their lives. The grant that is provided is in the amount of 2.7 million dollars, and this provides many supports for victims throughout different states. This provides shelter support, crisis counseling, referrals, and other services. Such services may be provided by volunteers or private agencies (often non-profit), and services cannot discriminate against the victims. There are VOCA funds that will provide financial assistance and reimbursement to victims of crime.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">These funds help victims that have suffered child abuse, sexual abuse, or spousal abuse. VOCA focuses on inventions that will strengthen relationships with people that combat intimate partner violence. This is a valuable source of support for the victims and will help strengthen them in their recovery. This is provided in each State Administration Agency across the country.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p><h3 style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b>Violence against Women Act (VAWA)</b></h3><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">This act is to support women that have or still suffering from domestic violence. This provides legal assistance, training for law enforcement, transitional housing, crisis intervention, dating violence, domestic, sexual assault, stalking. The Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) provides funding directly to the states and they are responsible for distributing the funds to each program.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">The state is responsible for providing 25% of the funds to law enforcement and prosecutors, 30% for victims, and 5% to state and local courts. This act also focuses on engaging men and boys as allies to strengthen interventions under the discretionary grant program. OVW work towards improving services to underserved populations and this is a benefit to ensure everyone can receive this assistance.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p5" style="color: #474747; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="s1" style="color: black;">Barth and Jiranek states, “</span>The OVW grant solicitation enumerates various practices and procedures that jeopardize victim safety each year. The 2022 solicitation explains that "OVW does not fund activities that jeopardize victims’ safety, deter or prevent physical or emotional healing for victims, or allow offenders to escape responsibility for their actions" (FY 2022 Solicitation Companion Guide, [82], p.17) (1)”.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p6" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>Family Violence Prevention and Services (FVPSA) (2019)</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">This act supports services to victims of domestic violence and survivors throughout the United States. In 2019 this act distributed $180 million to combat IPV, $10.3 million to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, $164 million to shelters and services, and $5.5 million to support the CDC’s DELTA Impact program. This was improved by Congress in 2019 increases funding, expand support to culturally specific, and invest in prevention programs.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>This act brings information into the communities throughout the United States to assistant in prevention initiatives. The funds that are distributed assist with promoting healthy relationships, positive development, and communities. </p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">Barth and Jiranek state, “On March 23, 2021, Congresswomen Lucy McBath of Georgia, re-introduced a bill proposing amendments to the FVPSA. Importantly, the Bill has put forth language stressing the importance of healthy relationship building, serving as a significant potential avenue to funding”.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p><h3 style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><b>Additional Avenues for States to Support Relationship Strengthening Programs<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></h3><p class="p7" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0px 36px;">There are categories that offenders are scored on based previous domestic violence. They<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">are ranked by being examined to determine the level of risk such as:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>suicidal/homicidal tendencies, use of weapons, obsession with victim. This is determined through evidence-based research and the assessment tool is what assigns the offenders their score.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">Barth and Jiranek states, “The DVRNA is composed of fourteen domains of risk most predictive of future <b>violence (1)”.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><b><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #cc0000;">[Under additional ways states support relationships and prevent violence, I was expecting you to mention the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA). It seems that you instead are saying that many caseworkers and domestic violence interventions use the Domestic Violence Risk and Needs Assessment (DVRNA), a standardized tool where someone can rate various situations and determine the risk of violence. ]</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><b><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></b></p><h4 style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b>In Conclusion<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></h4><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">I do support these laws: the reason is that I was a woman that suffered domestic violence. This is something that I did not know about—I had no idea that there were agencies that assisted people that suffered through domestic violence. This is a great opportunity for victims of violence to get back on their feet and restart their lives. Surviving through violence affects more than your physical well-being, it affects your mental state, as well. The bruises on the outside will heal but the internal affect is long standing. Depending on the amount abuse that you suffered, determines the amount of therapy that you may need.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p8" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></p><h4 style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b>References</b></h4><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">Barth, Richard P. and Jiranek, Harriet C. (2023). Strengthening Relationships between Couples to Respond to Domestic Violence: a Commentary on Policy Changes Needed to Support this Evolution.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="s2" style="color: #4c4c4c; text-decoration-line: underline;">Journal of Family </span><span class="s3" style="color: #0743b9; text-decoration-line: underline;"><b>Violence</b></span><span class="s4" style="color: #474747;">. May2023, Vol. 38 Issue 4, p761-774. 14p.</span></p><p class="p9" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0px 36px; min-height: 13px; text-indent: -36px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-78086881188867024412023-12-19T17:28:00.000-08:002023-12-19T17:28:18.393-08:00Improving Health Care for Pregnant and Postpartum Individuals Act (2021)<p> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-indent: 36px;">In this paper, I will be providing an explanation and overview of the Maternal Mortality Omnibus Bill, and how it has aimed to affect maternal health. This bill (which will be referred to as this MMOB for short from here on) may also be referred to as the, “Improving Health Care for Pregnant and Postpartum Individuals Act,” as that is a more specific name for it, whereas MMOB is a much more generic term. It was introduced by the Illinois General Assembly in 2021 and its main goal is to target concerns of high maternal mortality/morbidity rates in Illinois. Particularly, the bill is also meant to decrease the amount of obstacles that are in the way for some people to actually access care. In 2018, a report from the Illinois Department of Health demonstrated exactly that; the rates of maternal mortality and morbidity—especially among Black parents giving birth—were noticeably high, which prompted this bill to be written and passed.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">This bill was specifically introduced by Senator Cristina Castro in February 2021, and signed by Governor J.B. Pritzker on August 27th, 2021. This bill demanded the Department of Human Services put more manpower and focus into its maternal child health programs to benefit pregnant and postpartum people, especially those considered high-risk. All of the services this bill outlines were designated to be distributed by licensed social workers, registered nurses, and/or other health professional staff with training in behavioral health.</p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">There are several different specific goals this bill sets out to accomplish. One of which is making it easier for people to access long-acting reversible contraception in the hopes that there are fewer unplanned pregnancies, which would also have the effect of decreased mortality rates among birthing mothers. The bill outlines that it will force insurance plans to make the cost of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) isolated from that of other postpartum services, which makes LARC more accessible for people to receive after having given birth. Another thing this bill aims to improve is new parents’ access to case management services, especially those of low-income or high-risk pregnancies, particularly relating to that of mental health and substance abuse treatment. These services include parenting guidance, teaching parents on child development, and exposing them to other resources that may be beneficial to them.</p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">Guaranteeing coverage over needed in- and outpatient treatment services is yet another primary goal of this bill. The idea here is that it will help pregnant parents get the care that they require to have a healthy delivery, which will decrease the chance of her mortality. The last goal that will be covered here is the provision of 48-hours of inpatient treatment without any waiting times. This means that if a pregnant person needs to go to the hospital and get treatment right away, whether it be for detoxification or managing withdrawal, she may be able to, which will help treat and/or prevent many conditions or symptoms that could contraindicate pregnancy.</p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">Through these goals alone, it is evident that this MMOB plays a massive role in progressing maternal health and survivability, especially in women of higher risk (whether biologically or systemically). This includes many women of minority ethnic and racial groups, as they are more often low-income and/or systematically disadvantaged compared to whites (especially relevant to note is worse healthcare). Because Black women are about six times more likely to experience maternal mortality than white women, this Bill aims to make that disparity a little less sizable. Especially by providing those case management resources and more forgiving access to inpatient hospital care, African American women, Hispanic women, and women and families of other racial backgrounds will face less adversity in getting adequate prenatal and postnatal care.</p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">To add to this, unintended pregnancy rates are also much greater among women with lower income than those of middle or higher socioeconomic class. This bill’s focus on also improving accessibility to contraception and the affordability of it through insurance has played a role in making these rates go down. Greater unintended pregnancy rates equate to greater maternal mortality rate, so lowering the former will likely be successful in lowering the latter. Thus, the bill’s targeting of making contraception more available not only makes low-income individuals less likely to get unexpectedly pregnant via unprotected intercourse, but it also allows them to avoid deliveries carrying even the slightest bit of risk to the mother.</p><p class="p2" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 36px;">In conclusion, this Maternal Mortality Omnibus Bill is a policy change that has had the primary goal of improving the survival rate of women before, during and after childbirth. There is an apparent particular focus on women of low-income and women of color, as their maternal mortality rates are especially high, some of the provisions this bill includes are targeted towards benefitting them for the most part. Overall, by providing better means of obtaining contraception, immediate inpatient and outpatient treatment, and case management services, this policy change’s objective is to reduce the uneven differences to access to prenatal/postnatal healthcare in women of different demographics and to substantially improve the chance of survival and prosperous post-delivery health for all pregnant people in the state of Illinois.</p><p class="p3" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p4" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p4" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p5" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0px 36px;">Sources:</p><p class="p6" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0px 36px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><ul class="ul1"><li class="li7" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://everthriveil.org/legislation-news-the-latest-on-illinois-policies-affecting-public-health-june-2021/"><span class="s1" style="background-color: white;">Illinois Policies Affecting Public Health - EverThrive Illinois</span></a></li><li class="li7" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=31893"><span class="s1" style="background-color: white;">IDHS: Family Case Management (state.il.us)</span></a></li><li class="li7" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/life-stages-populations/maternal-child-family-health-services/maternal-health/mmmr.html"><span class="s1" style="background-color: white;">Maternal Morbidity and Mortality (illinois.gov)</span></a></li><li class="li7" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/publicacts/102/PDF/102-0665.pdf"><span class="s1" style="background-color: white;">ilga.gov/legislation/publicacts/102/PDF/102-0665.pdf</span></a></li><li class="li7" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://legiscan.com/IL/text/SB0967/id/2394740"><span class="s1" style="background-color: white;">Bill Text: IL SB0967 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Engrossed | LegiScan</span></a></li><li class="li7" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.macpac.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Chapter-2-Advancing-Maternal-and-Infant-Health-by-Extending-the-Postpartum-Coverage-Period.pdf"><span class="s1" style="background-color: white;">Chapter 2: Advancing Maternal and Infant Health by Extending the Postpartum Coverage Period (macpac.gov)</span></a></li></ul>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-10054973902610260732023-12-19T17:10:00.000-08:002023-12-19T17:10:18.146-08:00Student recommends parenting classes to families investigated by DCFS<p> <span style="font-family: Avenir;">Honorable State Senator Doris Turner and State Representative Michael J. Coffey, Jr.,</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>As my elected representatives in the Illinois General Assembly, I know that you are concerned with the well-being of Illinois Children.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I’m writing to you to make you aware of the benefits of parenting classes that help prepare adults for de-escalation in emotional conflict situations and help them understanding how to help children who have been traumatized. You may have opportunities to advocate for policies that would make this sort of training available to families that need it.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I believe that our community should offer parenting classes that teach parents trauma based care, to those who need them. These classes should be optional for those who want to better their parenting styles and they should be mandatory for parents who have had a legitimate DCFS claim against them but want to continue to have custody of their children. We have a lot of children who are living in unsafe homes but are being overseen by a caseworker, this is due to a high volume of abuse cases and the low availability of foster placements. Mending the biological home will deplete some of the need for foster placements by making the biological home safer.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">These classes should include an overview of trauma based care so that these parents know how to help their child heal rather than worsening their situation. This would be difficult for a lot of parents because, in many cases, it means accepting that they have caused their child trauma. This is a necessary step because these parents need to accept that mistakes have been made in order to move forward and heal from them.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The classes should also include deescalation techniques. Deescalation techniques are used to defuse an intense situation—the type of situation that has the potential to become violent. This would be useful in preventing arguments from getting out of hand. This is used when someone is starting to exhibit defensive or aggressive behaviors, such as breaking things or hitting. When a child gets to this point, it can be very frustrating and scary for a parent. Therefore if they have the tools to talk the child down, the adults are much less likely to resort to yelling and even hitting. I believe putting parents through this training would lessen instances of child abuse because the parents would have a safe and effective way to deal with difficult family situations.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The classes should also include education on proper nutrition and hygiene. Many of these parents miss out on teaching their kids about the basics of life. This may be because they were never taught or because their lives are so hectic that the basics fall to the sidelines. Either way children need to be taught how to properly care for themselves and in order to do that, the parents need to be taught how to teach these basics.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I work in a local elementary school and I have several students who are being managed by a caseworker, but it's not enough. Take “Jaiden” (not the child’s real name for confidentiality)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>for example, he is living with his mother and step father and has a severe emotional disability. The parents both work full time to provide for the family and seem to care greatly for the child. Every night the stepfather drinks after work and then becomes violent with the mother. The mother is frustrated with doing all of the household work and working a full time job, along with caring for her disabled son and being physically assaulted every night. She lets this frustration lead her to handle behavioral issues with her son by striking him. She also recently stopped doing any laundry or bathing the child. I truly believe that these parents love and care for their child, but the situation in their home is no longer a healthy one to raise a child in. This could be solved with parenting classes. Knowing how to deescalate themselves and each other could prevent the abusive situations from occurring, and knowing how to talk to the child about why the previous situation was not a healthy one can help them heal from the trauma already caused. With these situations taking less time and energy from the adults of the family the household basics, such as food preparation and laundry, can start taking place again.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">For families like Jaiden’s, these classes could mean the difference between children staying in their homes and children being pulled into the foster care system. I think it is only fair that we give these parents the tools they need to raise their children in safe, loving homes. While we should give these parents the chance to grow, we also need to give their children a chance to have a happy and safe childhood, therefore I believe the best solution is to provide community parenting classes.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">These classes would require funding from the state, but eventually it will save the state money by lessening the amount of children who need to be overseen by a caseworker. It could also cause these children to grow up to be productive members of our community, rather than growing up to be in a mental hospital or prison, which would also save our communities money in the long run.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Avenir; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There is also a chance that people who need the class will not sign up on their own. I think this class should be open to anyone who would like to attend, but the majority of attendees would probably be required by the state to complete the class. This would be established by requiring parents who reported to DCFS and it is found that the claim is legitimate, being court ordered to attend the class.</p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-4318506521023850592023-12-19T15:59:00.000-08:002023-12-19T15:59:28.413-08:00Student hopes mayor will support a local detox center<p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">To the Honorable Misty Buscher, Mayor of Springfield, Illinois</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">As someone who has gone through withdrawal alone several times, we definitely have a huge gap in care in Springfield. We are sorely lacking and in desperate need of a detox facility in Springfield. As a leader in city government, I hope you'll work with others to address this gap in services and facilities in our city.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">I work at Family Guidance Centers and we work with a vastly underserved community. When someone is finally willing and wanting to get help for their substance use disorder, my heart drops every time I have to tell them they have to go through detox before we can admit them into our facility. I help them make calls to detox centers outside of town, sometimes in Decatur or Shelbyville, sometimes even Champaign. Often these places don’t answer, or they tell you that they have to call you back. So, what if these people don’t have phones? Then, even if they manage to get through somewhere and get accepted and get a time to come in, they don’t have transportation. </p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">My facility can organize for us to pick people up once they’ve completed detox, but we can’t transport them to detox. How are they going to find a way, so far out of town? This issue comes up often. When someone is in such a fragile place, when that window is finally open for them to want and be ready for help, such a huge roadblock as this can be all it takes for someone to give up. This is a real problem in our community, and I can testify that I have seen it happen. We’ve had patients detox on their own because they had no other choice, and they were really that committed to getting clean. </p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">This is unnecessarily cruel and awful for people to go through. Not to mention, self-managed detoxification could be very dangerous. I, myself, suffered a small stroke once when I was detoxing from alcohol on my own. I’m hoping the community can come together to help fill this huge gap in care, and I would appreciate your support in the matter.</p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-36946503055982859532023-12-19T15:49:00.000-08:002023-12-19T15:49:02.726-08:00Transgender protest about YMCA locker rooms<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="font-family: Calibri; white-space: pre;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The article “</span><a href="https://illinoiseagle.com/2023/07/13/state-freedom-caucus-holds-presser-blasts-ymca-over-transgender-policy/" style="font-family: Calibri;"><span class="s1" style="color: #0b4cb4;">State Freedom Caucus holds presser, blasts YMCA over transgender policy</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">” described one policy issue that caused a lot of controversy. This was a locker room policy at the Kerasotes YMCA. Two months ago, a 16-year-old girl Abbigail Wheeler and her family protested over the fact that the YMCA allow transgender people to use the same locker room that matches with their identity. And this issue came across due to an incident of when Wheeler went into the locker room and saw a transgender woman there, and was uncomfortable about potentially seeing that person change out of their swimsuit. Although she was not exposed to the transgender woman’s genitals, the situation did make Abbigail Wheeler uncomfortable.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Abbigail’s father, Dan Wheeler spoke at the rally and was quoted in news media as saying: “ Rather, we stand here today in unity to advocate for all the families that drop their children off at the YMCA in Springfield, by bringing awareness to a flawed policy based on, my opinion, of improper interpretation of current state statute that allows children to be potentially exposed to individuals of the opposite biological sex in the girls’ locker rooms.” On the news, after mentioning the rally, the coach was quoted as saying that there “was nothing they could do by Illinois state law.” Also, someone from the YMCA said that if she was uncomfortable then she could use the family locker rooms or she could change at home, and that she did not need to use the facilities used by the trans woman. The Illinois human rights act prohibits businesses or in this case recreational centers, from denying or refusing the “full and equal enjoyment of facilities, goods, and services” solely based on someone’s gender identity according to the Illinois Department of Human Rights website.” On the other hand, Abigail and her teammates did send a hate speech message towards the trans community by posting signs like “Biological women only” and “men are not welcome here” on the door to the women’s locker room. That is showing bad behavior on their part as well.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Both the news and the article showed how there are major flaw in the YMCA policy, specifically when it comes to both women’s privacy and safety. Even though, I agree that any sort of discrimination towards the trans community is wrong and should not be tolerated as stated by the federal laws. “There are still policies that need to be put in place. Overall, one policy to avoid more outcomes and or issues of this from appearing could be by giving transgendered persons their own bathrooms based off their identity. So, it will allow them to feel comfortable in their own spaces and for the biological sex to not be uncomfortable as well. Or another way to solve this without it being overly expensive is to have personal stalls in locker rooms for the protection of others’ privacy.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Reference</span></p><p class="p5" style="color: #0b4cb4; font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="s2" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a href="https://www.nprillinois.org/equity-justice/2023-07-14/state-freedom-caucus-holds-presser-blasts-ymca-over-transgender-policy">https://www.nprillinois.org/equity-justice/2023-07-14/state-freedom-caucus-holds-presser-blasts-ymca-over-transgender-policy</a></span></p><p class="p5" style="color: #0b4cb4; font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="s2" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a href="https://www.nprillinois.org/equity-justice/2016-07-14/illinois-issues-the-battle-over-transgender-rights-in-the-bathroom-and-beyond">https://www.nprillinois.org/equity-justice/2016-07-14/illinois-issues-the-battle-over-transgender-rights-in-the-bathroom-and-beyond</a></span><span class="s3" style="color: black;"> </span></p><p class="p5" style="color: #0b4cb4; font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="s2" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/SpringfieldIL/comments/14yx9e2/some_truth_comes_out_about_the_y_scandal/">https://www.reddit.com/r/SpringfieldIL/comments/14yx9e2/some_truth_comes_out_about_the_y_scandal/</a></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: Calibri; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">This seems like an ethical dilemma. Abbigail Wheeler and her parents and politiicans of the Freedom caucus are appealing to a purity ethic about two things: they are claiming that transgender women are still men, and they are saying that women in changing rooms and showers of a YMCA have a right to be in sex-segregated situations where no men will be mixed with them. The law and most of us are claiming that transgender women are essentially women, and should be treated no differently from other women. We are saying that excluding transgendered women from women's locker rooms and showers and bathrooms would violate their human rights and civil rights. </span></p><p class="p3" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">There are a variety of circumstances that give rise to persons who are not easily placed into categories of male or female (e.g., intersex conditions at birth). Likewise, slight mutations in a fetus can alter how they respond to certain hormones, so that persons with a brain of one gender might have genitals of another gender. One project embraced by most progressive people is to reframe the categories and constructs related to male and female, masculine and feminine, suggesting these can be vague or flexible. A counter project embraced by many conservative people is to claim that gender is immutable and clearly defined, so that everyone (or nearly everyone) belongs in one of two categories, and will remain in whatever category they were born into for their entire life. </span></p><p class="p3" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Most of the conflicts arise from assumptions and definitions about what we mean when we say someone is a "female" or a "male" person. </span></p><p class="p3" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">At any rate, I prefer private stalls for changing and so forth. It's slightly awkward in a gym or pool locker room when taking showers in a communal shower or changing out of a swimsuit with other people around. I only find it slightly awkward, and have never been particularly uncomfortable about it, but I can tell that some people find this sort of thing extremely disturbing, and if they happen to fear that someone of the other gender will see them, and they old traditional binary attitudes about gender, they are going to be feeling hurt by policies such as we have in Illinois. Perhaps the solution is the one you suggested, where we use private stalls for changing. </span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-36952357875026820712023-12-19T14:33:00.000-08:002023-12-19T14:33:25.359-08:00Student who works in school for children with special needs has insight about crisis prevention intervention training<p> <span style="font-family: Arial; text-indent: 36px;">I work in a school with children who interact a lot with social services. I have several students in foster care homes, but usually when they are put into foster care they get bounced from house to house and school to school. This is unhealthy for the child because they never have a chance to form meaningful relationships. The students I work with have behavioral disorders, so they are not typical foster children; they require extra resources and care. Most times these kids are removed from their biological home and placed into a foster home.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: Arial; text-indent: 36px;"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Arial; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">Once they get to the home they have a grace period where they are not comfortable enough to display their typical behaviors. After this period they start to display their behaviors, which can be violence or running away, and so forth. A lot of times when a child has a burst of violence or displays aggressive behavior, the foster parents give up on fostering the child. I think this could be avoided in most situations if people were properly trained and educated on how to deal with these situations.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Arial; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Arial; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">As a requirement for my job I have to attend CPI training every year. This is Crisis Prevention Intervention training. It teaches people how to deescalate others in times of emotional crisis. It also teaches how to block most physical attacks (from children) and how to safely restrain a child if necessary. It also touches on trauma-based care. All of these things would be very helpful for a foster parent dealing with aggressive behaviors.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Arial; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Arial; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">I knew a foster parent who had a foster son for over a year and they were both very good for each other, but one night the foster son lost his temper and started hitting and kicking the foster mom, she was afraid to do anything other than call DCFS for fear of being accused of doing something harmful to him (he has been known to make false abuse allegations). The foster mother was a DCFS worker and if she were CPI trained she probably could have safely deescalated the situation without fearing for her own safety or livelihood. One big thing CPI training teaches is to take a step away from your emotions and assess what the risks are of the child’s behavior, this lessens the risk of the foster parent losing their temper or becoming overwhelmed and responding to a situation in an unsafe or abusive way.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Arial; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Arial; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">I think this training should be required for all foster parents who take children with behavioral/ emotional disorders, and maybe all foster children (considering that they have all experienced ACES). I think providing this training would not only keep children in foster homes longer, which is better for the child’s mental wellbeing and financially beneficial for everyone, but also it could make foster homes into a healing place. If the foster parents learn how to properly support and care for their foster children, they can be the positive caring role models the child needs in their life. The longer a foster child is with a good foster parent, the better off they will be. If they do not get bounced from house to house, the child is less likely to be funneled into an institution. Most children will be much better off if they can stay in a home setting rather than being put in an institutionalized setting.</p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-44154962565924106162023-12-13T17:30:00.000-08:002023-12-13T17:30:32.308-08:00The SAFE-T Act<p> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px;">Bail in the United States is a very controversial topic. While the idea behind it is logical to an extent, being that people will be less likely to just ditch court and other post-jail time proceedings if they’ve already invested something; it is not fair to those who may not be able to afford it, whether or not they desire to. With Illinois becoming the first state to remove bail, an interesting opportunity arises, to finally see how a bail-less environment will impact things like jail-time and crime rates. It will be interesting to see if it has any significant impact, positive or negative, on the effectiveness of the criminal justice system.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I personally believe that this can most likely only be beneficial or neutral in terms of the statistics mentioned prior. I had previously done a project on a possible bail removal in Illinois, and I was very intrigued and pleased by the idea. Bail inherently affects jail-time, especially for lower income families. A rich person may commit a crime worse than someone of lower socioeconomic class, but spend virtually no time in jail because they have a greater wealth to spend on bail. Now, obviously just because you are able to pay bail does not mean you are free or off the hook. However, this still matters because of the unfair level of freedom between socioeconomic classes that this causes.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>In the past, I’ve seen documentaries on bail (specifically pertaining to low-income households and how they are affected by bail) and on other topics where bail would be brought up. In them, the true tragedy that bail can cause was well illustrated. For example, in the one focused on bail in particular, someone had committed a petty crime, and in another family someone got committed for a crime they possibly did not even commit. Despite this, the families could not see their respective beloved family members, since they could not afford the bail. Imagine not being able to see your mother or father, your daughter or son, or another close relative outside of a cell the government is keeping them in because you do not have enough money. That, to me, sounds absolutely gut-wrenchingly vile, that a government would keep a system in place where it is easily possible and not uncommon for this to happen.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>What surprises me the most is that nothing like this has been truly attempted before in the US on this scale, at least not from my recollection. I was ecstatic hearing that this was finally being realized, but I still worry it may not last, and that Illinois may be the only state to try this to this extent. A decision like this is clearly a very big one to make, one with risks, but I firmly believe it is worth it to have a good chance at making the criminal justice system more fair. Considering all of the other terribly unjust aspects of it – the greater incarceration rate for people of color and the many innocent people who are convicted and imprisoned being prime examples – I think we truly need a law or policy like this as a great step towards a more free and fair nation.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The fact that our country’s incarceration rate is one of the highest in the world should be a wake-up call in and of itself; we need to focus on that much more than we already do. Especially since many of the issues surrounding it, much like this one, can repeat themselves and become perpetual if nothing is done. For example, if a very young child’s poor single mother has to go to jail for some minor crime, but their family cannot afford the bail, so they must simply wait out the time, the child may grow up for a substantial portion of time without a parental figure. This could lead to the child growing up without certain values or manners instilled in them. Combine this with the fact that the family is low-income to begin with, they may end up not learning or understanding how to be a stable, secure, and independent adult. They may end up committing crimes and/or staying unemployed because they do not know better. Stories akin to this one are all over America, and it’s one of this country’s greatest failures in my eyes. Hence, this bail removal in Illinois is a wonderful change that ought to have some significant impact, and I hope other states consider adopting it as well.</p><p class="p2" style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I like your open-mindedness and curiosity about ending cash bail. There are obvious problems with the bail system, and your characterization of some of those systemic problems being “gut-wrenchingly vile” seems appropriate. The problem of inevitable error (all social welfare policies have errors, and changes that reduce one sort of an error will usually increase some other type of error) applies, and there are risks of problems with ending cash bail.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>At least Illinois is working as a laboratory, and talking about the desire to end a system that inflicts harms of injustice and unfair treatment based on income/wealth. If the problems resulting from ending cash bail in Illinois are not too egregious, perhaps other states will follow the Illinois example, and this will be a step toward a more perfect union, with more freedom and justice, and less unfair discrimination against persons lacking wealth or well-paying employment. I personally communicated with my representatives in the General Assembly endorsing the SAFE-T Act, but I studied criticisms of the act as well. I’m pretty confident the new practices will have more benefits than harmful consequences, but if significant problems emerge, I think and hope that the state government will be able to solve them without returning to systems of cash bail.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-20931697332086050042023-05-14T22:18:00.005-07:002023-05-14T22:18:26.142-07:00Student supports specific bill to ban high capacity magazines<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> Senator Tammy Duckworth<br />524 Hart Senate Office Building<br />Washington DC 20510</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />Senator Richard J. Durbin<br />711 Hart Senate Office Building<br />Washington DC 20510</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />Dear Illinois Senators Duckworth and Durbin, </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> My name is ________, and I am a senior in the Social Work program at the University of Illinois-Springfield. I have lived in Illinois for all of my 21 years. I am writing to thank you both for your support of the reintroduction of the Keep Americans Safe Act. This bill aims to ban the “importation, sale, manufacturing, transfer, or possession of gun magazines that hold more than ten rounds of ammunition,” (“Senators Markey & Menendez Re-Introduce”, 2023). Although this bill died in the 117th Congress, I am glad it is being reintroduced to the 118th with the help of cosponsors like you. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> The most widely accepted definition of a mass shooting is an event in which four or more people are shot and killed (Uribe & Sherman, 2023). High-capacity magazines, which hold ten or more rounds of ammunition, make mass shooting events more deadly. According to Everytown Research (2019), between 1981 and 2017, mass shootings that involved a high-capacity magazine injured 14 times as many people and were twice as deadly as those that did not. Within the past decade, the five deadliest mass shootings in the United States were carried out using high-capacity magazines (Everytown, 2019). If the Keep Americans Safe Act had been implemented, the hundreds of people killed in Las Vegas, Orlando, Newtown, Sutherland Springs, and Parkland may still be alive today. High-capacity magazines are designed to kill and to kill fast. There is no reason for civilians to have access to these kinds of weapons. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> As a student, I would be lying if I said the idea of a mass shooting occurring at school did not frighten me. Less than two weeks ago, there was a mass shooting at Michigan State University, which is just five hours north of my own university. I have undergone routine school shooter drills since the fourth grade. For over a decade, teachers and administrators have told me, “hide,” “don’t try to save your friends,” “don’t make a sound,” “use anything you can find as a weapon,” “we won’t let you in the classroom if you’re in the hall during a lockdown,” among other things. Children should be able to go to school without fear of dying next to their friends. People should be able to go to the supermarket without fear of being gunned down in the meat aisle. Everyone should be able to leave home without fear of becoming a victim in the next mass shooting. The Keep Americans Safe Act is a step in the right direction. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> Assuming both of you hold the values of caring and fairness, the Keep Americans Safe Act is a fine reflection of these. By cosponsoring this bill, you are placing the emotional and physical well-beings of American citizens above all else. By advocating for the prohibition of high-capacity magazines, you are advocating for people to be able to go places with less fear and likelihoods of mass shootings. Additionally, since this bill is regarding the ban of high-capacity magazines—not all guns—there is a fair balance between citizens’ safety and their Second Amendment rights. As a future social worker, I, too, value care and fairness, which contributes to my support and appreciation of your cosponsoring of this bill.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> I look forward to seeing how the bill progresses through the 118th congress. I will be sure to consider you both when it comes time to show up to the polls. Thank you, again, for your dedication to keeping Americans safe from unnecessary harm. <br /><br />Sincerely,<br /> _______________<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> References</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />(2019, March). Assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Everytown. https://everytownresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/07/EFGV02_Assault-Weapons-and-High-Capacity-Magazines_Rd2_6-1.pdf <br /><br />(2023, February 8). Duckworth, Durbin join senate colleagues in reintroducing legislation to ban high-capacity magazines. Tammy Duckworth U.S. Senator for Illinois. https://www.duckworth.senate.gov/news/press-releases/duckworth-durbin-join-senate-colleagues-in-reintroducing-legislation-to-ban-high-capacity-magazines <br /><br />(2023, February 9). Senators Markey and Menendez re-introduce Keep Americans Safe Act which bans high-capacity firearms. Framingham source. https://framinghamsource.com/index.php/2023/02/09/senators-markey-menendez-re-introduce-keep-americans-safe-act-which-bans-high-capacity-firearms/ <br /><br />Uribe, M. R., & Sherman, A. (2023, February 14). What counts as a “mass shooting”? The definition varies. PolitiFact. https://www.politifact.com/article/2023/feb/14/what-counts-as-a-mass-shooting-the-definition-vari/ <br /><br /><br /></span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-42492017887655308462023-05-13T21:49:00.004-07:002023-05-13T21:49:26.645-07:00Example of student letter to administrative body asking for changes in IEP process for classroom placements<p> To the Members of the Illinois State Board of Education,<br /> The mission statement of the Illinois State Board of Education is to “provide each and every child with safe and healthy learning conditions, great educators, and equitable opportunities by practicing data-informed stewardship of resources and policy development, all done in partnership with educators, families, and stakeholders.” The goals, vision, and commitments of this institution are aligned in a commitment to provide a quality education for every child, ensuring that each student leaves our schools equipped to make a meaningful contribution to society. However, some children are still facing disadvantages in our school system, including some that have been inadvertently created by the very programs intended to help them.<br /> My son, R_______, was born in May of [year]. Although he began showing signs of autism at only eighteen months old, he was not formally diagnosed until January of 2020. When he started preschool in the fall of [year] at the [School and its location], his father and I already knew he was neurodivergent, but the psychology professionals were hesitant to diagnose him at such a young age. During his screening for public school, we voiced our concerns to the professionals who administered the tests, but R____ was having a good day and eagerly participated in the tasks. He was judged to have no problems and placed in a normal classroom. <br /> The problems began almost immediately. R____ was used to receiving individual attention and was not capable of understanding that his teacher was responsible for another twenty students. He began lashing out on a daily basis, disrupting the classroom and sometimes endangering those around him by throwing or pushing large objects. Luckily, the school now had evidence that R____ had special needs and moved him to a smaller classroom that boasted three teacher aides and a teacher skilled in dealing with students with behavioral problems or emotional disability. Under her patient care, R____ began to learn and socialize with other students. R____ was given his first IEP and dedicated, specialized care that helped him enjoy and learn during his school experience. In addition to having four adults to manage his class of twelve, R____ received daily one on one time with his social worker, who worked tirelessly to help him learn to control his emotions and manage his behaviors. <br /> The pandemic robbed R____ of kindergarten, so his first year at [elementary school] was in the classroom of Mrs. [teacher name]. Mrs. [teacher name] was a joy to have as my son’s teacher, but, once again, the setting of a normal classroom was simply not conducive to R____’s learning. There was not enough adult attention, the level of overlapping noises of twenty children caused sensory overload, and he was often confused by the curriculum and had no one to ask. When we as parents inquired about the services R_____ should have been receiving, we found that his IEP from the [previous school] was not even considered and R_____ was receiving no accommodations. We were then told that he could not be moved because he was to be placed in the “least restrictive environment,” among normal students if possible. <br /> Despite the incredible efforts and passionate advocacy of Mrs. [Teacher], R______ learned nothing during his time at [school] and was suspended a total of twenty times before the principal stepped in and demanded that R______ receive accommodations that would create a better learning environment. The decision of the committee was that R______ should be placed at [Name of School] Elementary School. Mrs. [Teacher], R_____’s father, and I argued that if R_____ were given an aide to assist him in regulating his emotions and to help him understand classroom instructions, he would be able to remain in a normal classroom. While R______ had known many exemplary teachers, Mrs. [Teacher] was the first to really bond with my autistic child, and I was often humbled by her fierce advocating for my son and grateful for her advice and experience. It was she who advised us to find an advocate to help navigate the system after we were out of her hands. The professionals at the IEP meeting did not even consider our request, instead informing us that there were procedures to follow. R______ must move to the next level rather than receiving the accommodation recommended by his teacher, social worker, and psychologist. <br /> The next step in placement turned out to be a classroom for intellectual disabilities, even though R______ is not and has never been intellectually disabled. Worse, the string of suspensions were worded in such a way that the new teacher interpreted them to mean that my six-year-old was violent and dangerous, and she treated him as though he would attack at any given moment. In the short month in which he attended her class, I received daily phone calls, all of which occurred after incidents. However, by this time, we had found an IEP advocate, an incredible woman named Susie Woods. During the first IEP meeting attended by Ms. Woods, the educators of [School] expedited R______’s placement to a classroom for children with emotional disabilities. In August of [year], he began attending a classroom designed for children with social and emotional problems. R_______ has begun progressing academically and making friends, but the bureaucratic method used by local schools to determine placement for special needs students cost him over a year of education and caused significant setbacks in his social and behavioral development. <br /> Of the nearly two million students enrolled in public school in the state of Illinois, approximately 16.5% have IEPs, a total of 307,555 students in 2022. Students who qualify for IEPs often have disadvantages when compared to students who do not need individualized plans for their education. Programs such as special education and accommodations made for students with IEPs are designed to level the playing field and help relatively disadvantaged students succeed. However, students with IEPs are 10% more likely to be chronically absent from class and 5% more likely to be chronically truant. In addition to these issues, students with IEPs are more likely to drop out of school before achieving their diploma, a relatively small difference in percentage but one that remains persistent going back to 2018, when the percentage of students with IEPs who dropped out was nearly double the number of “normal” students who dropped out. While the gap is closing, its persistent presence seems indicative of ongoing problems faced by students with special needs.<br /> The Illinois State Board of Education installed a policy regarding Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) in February of 2000 which was intended to establish guidelines that follow the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1997. The policy states that “to the maximum extent appropriate, students with disabilities aged 3 through 21, in public or private institutions or other care facilities, are educated with children who are not disabled.” It further requires that the first placement option “is a regular education environment, with the use of supplemental aids and services as needed. Special classes, separate schooling, or other placements by which students with disabilities are removed from the regular education environment should occur only if the student’s Individual Educational Program (“IEP”) team determines that the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in a regular classroom setting, even with the use of supplemental aids and services, cannot be achieved satisfactorily.” <br /> On the surface, the policies surrounding students with IEPs and Least Restrictive Environment provide reasonable accommodations to students with special educational needs without unnecessarily segregating them from the general population. However, in practice, these policies are causing some students with IEPs to suffer delays in their education as they are shuffled from one unsuitable classroom to the next in an attempt to keep them in a “less restrictive environment.” Since change of placement takes time, it can take a year or more to find the best environment for a special needs student—years during which these students fall further and further behind their peers.<br /> I do not want you to advocate for extensive change in policy; least restrictive environment policies are most often beneficial and prevent students with IEPs from feeling isolated or abnormal and keeping them actively a part of the population. However, the policy should be amended to allow for more rapid change of placement for students when it is found that the classroom they have been placed in is unsuitable. This could be accomplished by giving the IEP committee more discretion in placement decisions. For example, educators should be able to forego steps in placement, moving the child to a “more restrictive environment” sooner if the committee deems it appropriate. <br /> In addition, each student with an IEP should be automatically assigned an IEP advocate. The well-being of a child in our education system should not be dependent on how knowledgeable their parents are regarding their rights, nor should they be reliant on the goodwill of individual educators. Even if the child has knowledgeable or caring parents, the parents may not be able to attend IEP meetings; for example, single parents cannot always get the time off work. An assigned advocate would be able to represent the child’s best interests at these meetings when their guardians cannot. <br /> These changes would assist families and educators to minimize delays in providing special needs students with the setting, services, and accommodations required for effective learning. However, it cannot be ignored that these changes will incur financial costs and require school districts to employ IEP advocates. Another complication arises from having these advocates employed by the school districts, which may make it difficult for the advocates to remain unbiased when representing a student against their employer.<br /> It is the vision of the public education system of the State of Illinois to provide every child with the tools and skills they need to succeed and make a meaningful contribution to society. To this end, it is my recommendation that these changes be adopted as a policy by the Board of Education. <br /> <br />Sources:<br />Illinois Report Card<br />https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/state.aspx?source=studentcharacteristics&source2=iep&Stateid=IL<br /><br /><br /></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-89177960223863325232023-05-13T21:00:00.001-07:002023-05-13T21:00:19.501-07:00Student makes a plea for immigraton reform by sharing a story<p> </p><p><span>Dear Congressman Cleaver,</span></p>
<p><span>I write to you today, because my family has found ourselves in a
position that I believe is unjust. And while we have been able to work
through our situation and struggles, I worry for other families in our
same position. I want you to make immigration reform a priority, and I want Congress and the White House to change some of the laws for immigrants to make our system more humane.<br /></span></p>
<p><span>My husband</span><span>’</span><span>s name is R_________. He is a Lebanese man who at 18
left everything and everyone he knew to come into the United States of
America. He took every single minute step to insure he came to this
country, completely legally and correctly. He sharpened his English
skills and scored one of the highest test scores in his entire country.
He has done nothing but work hard to not only get to the United States,
but also to stay here. R______ has been here for five years and working for
four and a half. </span></p><p><span>When I met </span><span>R_________</span><span> in January 2022 he had just accepted a
job with the state of Missouri working as a DFS caseworker. After
working there for several months, he switched to another position with
the state. However, in December 2022 our lawyer informed us that R_____ would
not be able to work past January 31. This came as a huge shock and upset
to us. Mainly because R_____ was the sole provider of our home. He paid
for groceries and he paid our rent. I work as a waitress and am a
full-time student; solely based on my income we could no longer afford our
rent. We had to find somewhere else to live within the next month.
However, for people who cannot afford a lawyer this notice can be even
shorter.</span></p>
<p><span>Now, luckily for us, we were blessed, and my parents very
happily had us move into their home. However, for families, not as
blessed as mine, the same situation could have put them into debt, out
of home and in a complete spiral. I haven’t stopped thinking about that
since we had to move. So that’s why I think families should be protected
from this. </span><span>R_____</span><span> is a perfect representation that you can do everything
by the book and properly and still be thrown to the wolves so to speak.
We were one of the lucky ones who had support behind us. But I worry for
those who don’t have the support. This is why I think there should be
an implemented policy that if a legal immigrant has worked in the U.S.
for over two years, there should not be a lapse of time where the person
cannot work. These are people who have already been contributing to
their communities and this country. People who want to positively affect
the United States of America. These people should not be put in a
situation that can completely sabotage an entire family. </span></p><p><span>We have to wait
for </span><span>R_____</span><span>‘s green card for him to be able to work. At this point for us
that means he will be out of work for a total of 6 to 8 months. But for
some people who aren’t blessed enough to have lawyers and be able to
afford a lawyer, this could mean it takes a year or more. People who
successfully migrate here completely legally and buy the books should
not be sabotaged by a rule that can completely destroy a family. If not
for my parents having open arms, my husband, the person I’m supposed to
spend the rest of my life with, wouldn</span><span>’t</span><span> have been able to afford to
stay in this country. He would’ve had to have gone back to an unsafe
country. </span><span>R_____</span><span> loves this country, and most of the time more than Lebanon.
And even though going through this made us lose our home when we were
first getting started, </span><span>R_____</span><span> has done nothing but be thankful that he’s
even in this country.</span></p>
<p><span>Congressman, I ask you to just think about what could happen to
a family in this situation. All I can ask of you is to consider that
families can be destroyed by this. And if you are as upset and concerned
about this, as I am, consider putting in a protection plan for the
people who just want to be in this country with their families. </span></p><p><span>I
appreciate the time you’ve taken to read this, and I hope that our story
can help set in motion something to protect others from this. </span></p>
<p><span>Sincerely, ____ ________<br /></span></p><p><span><span style="color: #cc0000;">This would have been stronger (but it is already good) if you had explained how it was that your husband was working and had accepted a job at the Missouri DFS. I assume he had come to the USA as a student, and after graduating he was hired in a field where an insufficient number of citizens were applying to fill positions. That could be true for social workers such as those who work in child and family services. So, his student visa was converted to a work-related visa, and then when he switched jobs he was forced to take time off and not work until his new status (as a permanent resident, with a “Green Card” because he was now the spouse of a U.S. citizen) became processed and official. I think what you are asking Congressman Cleaver is to sponsor or co-sponsor a bill that would allow foreign citizens who work here legally under any of the various schemes that allow their employment to not lose their status if they change from one job to another, nor lose their status of being allowed to work while their legal status changes from one type to another. You didn’t explain exactly what you wanted, but just told an excellent personal narrative with moral content that shows that the current situation is bad. </span></span></p><p><span><span style="color: #cc0000;">The other thing that you could do to make this more persuasive would be to comment on your story and point out the moral implications. You sort of do that by stressing how great R_____ is, and how much he loves our country. But you have to be direct and say, “the situation is wrong because it breaks [some moral principle of fairness or justice]”. That is, you are not merely asking your audience to do something related to legislation: you are asking them to take a step to make the world a better place where government policies conform to standards of morality, ethics, human rights, justice, and so forth. </span> <br /></span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-8152879149758621352023-05-13T20:00:00.007-07:002023-05-13T20:00:36.865-07:00Example of advocacy letter to promote Pretrial Fairness Act<p> Dear Representative [Republican Representative to the General Assembly of Illinois],</p><p><br /> I am writing to you as a constituent and Social Work student regarding a provision of the SAFE-T Act, the Pretrial Fairness Act. I am urging you to vote in favor of the Pretrial Fairness Act. This legislation would eliminate the role of the money bond in Illinois, protecting the families of those who are waiting for trial, ensuring that wealth will not play a role in release and detention decisions. (Grace, 2021)</p><p><br /> On an average day in the United States, there are almost a half a million people who are in jail, waiting for their criminal cases to move forward. A study from this year showed that people in pretrial detention make up more than three quarters of the jail population. Of the Not Convicted population in jail, almost sixty-eight percent are being held on non-violent charges. (Sawyer, 2023) It is not because they are a risk to the public but because they cannot pay bail. For those who cannot afford their bail, this pretrial jail time can lead to the loss of jobs, connections and stability for themselves and their families, not to mention the danger one can be in while in jail. They often must wait for months and years for their cases to be resolved. (Bail, 2021) Bonds can be set around ten thousand. When they are paid in full, the people who pay the bonds can retrieve their money at the conclusion of a case. Most people cannot afford this amount so they have to rely on a bail-bonds company. To work with them, it required that 10 percent of the bail would be paid to the company. One thousand dollars is a lot of money to many. This situation could lead to poor decisions being made such as choosing between getting your friend or family member out of jail or pay rent. On top of the potential scramble for money, unlike paying the full bond to the court, they will not receive that ten percent back from the bond company.(White, 2021)</p><p><br /> In the New York Times a few years ago, there was a story done about a 53-year-old man named Tyrone Tomlin. He had just been at a convenience store when a police officer stopped him. Tyrone let the officer search him. All that he found was a fountain soda with a straw. He was handcuffed and placed under arrest for the possession of drug paraphernalia. The officer said that the straws are commonly used to hold heroin. When he was brought in front of a judge, he pleaded guilty so bond was set at one thousand five hundred. Tomlin could not afford the bond, so he was sent to Jail to be held until his arraignment the following week. When describing the jail, he said “This place is miserable, it’s dangerous. It’s every man for himself. You could get abused, you could get raped, you could get extorted. That stuff is all around”. His Aunt was worried about him and his employer had no idea where we was. When he came back to court, he refused to plead guilty and take the plea deal again, which led to another two week stretch in jail. While he was in the shower, he was jumped by a group of men. He was beaten and stomped and ended up with a misshapen face. Finally, three weeks after he was arrested, the straw was tested and was negative for drug residue. The judge said he was not guilty and was free to go. (Pinto, 2021)</p><p><br /> The Pretrial Act would prevent situations like Tomlin’s from happening here in Illinois. Under this legislation, Tomlin would get a ticket with a court date. He would be able to work while he waits for his trial date, saving taxpayers’ money. It would give people like him a chance to keep their family, work and potentially community from falling apart. It would also prevent them from experiencing potential abuse and violence at the hands of inmates. </p><p><br />I urge you to vote in favor or the Pretrial Act. If you do so, it will show that you are in favor of protecting the family unit. It will also show that you are for keeping the responsibility of making court dates in the hands of citizens and not the government. </p><p><br />Sincerely,<br />______________<br /><br /><br /><br />References<br />Grace, S. (2021, October 7). Pretrial Fairness Act - Coalition to End Money Bond. Coalition to End Money Bond. https://endmoneybond.org/pretrialfairness/<br />Sawyer, W. Wagner, P. (n.d.). Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2023. Prison Policy Initiative. https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/pie2023.html<br />Pinto, N. (2015, August 13). The Bail Trap. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/magazine/the-bail-trap.html<br />The Bail Project. (2021, March 4). After Cash Bail - The Bail Project. https://bailproject.org/after-cash-bail/#easy-footnote-bottom-5-39386<br />White, G. B. (2017, May 12). Who Really Makes Money Off of Bail Bonds? The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/05/bail-bonds/526542/</p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-57150200813349729632023-05-03T16:02:00.004-07:002023-05-03T16:04:14.494-07:00Student urges someone to support public service loan forgiveness in a specific county<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Dear whomever it concerns,</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s better when you figure out the name of the person to whom your letter ought to be addressed if you were to actually send it.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">My name is _____________ and I wanted to talk to you about the Student Loan Forgiveness for Social Workers. Specifically I would like to talk about the PSLF, which helps public service workers by giving them college loan forgiveness. I want you to push for getting this policy approved for Macon County Students. I believe it is important that social workers and public service workers can get help with their school, as they have gotten their degree to help their community. As we all know, public service workers do not get paid much; teachers, social workers, and anyone who works for the community they are in does not get paid as much as they deserve. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Why is that? They work overtime, that most of the time they are not even paid extra for their long hours? On top of everything that they work for, they also have to get the money together for their student loans, but students pay the same This is going to make people not want to go into being a social worker or a public service worker and then we will not have any. We need to help the ones who are helping our community and our society’s future. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I believe that if we make this policy a reality in Macon County, we will help the Public service workers, and have more help in school, DCFS and all of that. So please, consider this and help with our society’s future. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Thank You,</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>_____________</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You are suggesting that Macon County provide scholarships for students who, after graduating from local high schools, earn degrees in social work and other forms of public service (teacher education, I suppose), and these scholarships would be modeled on the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) policy, which forgives remaining balances on federal direct loans for education if a person who has debt from such loans has made 120 payments on their direct loan while earning an income from a qualified employer (qualified employers are mostly in government, which is why this is a “public service” policy). </span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As a federal policy, PSLF is available to all students, including those who reside in Macon County. Is it your intention that the County Board in Macon County (or perhaps the City Government in Decatur) should offer college loans to students from Macon County, and then forgive the balance on those loans if a recipient of such a loan has resided in Macon County and worked for a public entity in Macon County for a total of ten years? </span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s a very interesting idea: that a body of local government might get into the college lending business, supporting high school graduates and residents in the jurisdiction of the local government to earn university degrees and then stay in the jurisdiction after earning those degrees. Presumably the local government body would work with some sort of coalition of local banks and credit unions, who would set up the lending process and maintain the record-tracking. I could see this being an interesting policy that might help retain talent and innovation in localities that suffer from brain-drain as educated young adults flee the area and move to Chicago or out-of-state. This policy might also help recruit nurses, social workers, school teachers, law enforcement workers, emergency medical services workers, and so forth, if any of those types of occupation were having difficulties recruiting and retaining employees. </span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You would certainly want to write a letter with a little more clarity and detail, to help your audience understand what exactly you are suggesting. What you have done well in the letter is convey a sense that many professionals in public service are offering their diligent effort and expertise in the workplace, but they are not enjoying the respect or compensation that would encourage them to continue doing so, and in fact, such work is becoming less attractive. That point does help persuade your audience that something should be done. You might have explored why offering locally-sourced education loans that are paid back by the county or city governments after a loan recipient has paid back a certain number of times might be a better way of handling the problem compared to something more direct, such as increasing the wages of workers in these areas, or reducing their working hours or caseloads. I imagine the loans off the opportunity for the local government and local lending institutions to earn some profits from the interest payments as loans are repaid. It also may improve the opportunities for local households, whereas raising salaries or improving working conditions directly may benefit persons who are not local, who take local jobs and move into the area. </span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As you write letters for decision-makers, you must try to be very clear about what you are asking them to do, and explain why they should do what you want them to do. You need to be able to clearly tell them why a particular course of action is the best thing to do. Telling them that a situation needs fixing and giving them a general idea about the problem and types of solutions is fine, as that gets them thinking about a problem, but will probably find it more satisfying to push for very specific things when you do advocacy in the public policy sphere. </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #a40010; font-family: Times New Roman;">This assignment allows students to write about any sort of policy connected in any way with social welfare services or policies. I want people to write about <span style="caret-color: rgb(164, 0, 16);">things</span> that matter to them—I want students to care about the topics the address in these papers. Do you care about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness policy? Do you think 120 payments should be made before the remainder of the debt is wiped out? You can write about actual policies or made-up policies or policies that are being proposed but haven't been passed or implemented yet. I think in this case you could be writing about the actual existing PSLF program, in which case it is unnecessary to ask a local politician to make it apply in a specific area, because it already is a federal program. If you are using the same name, but imagining some other policy, or if you pretending that the PSLF program hasn't been enacted yet, then you would need to explain more about what it is and what it does. A single sentence that explains that some loans (those coming directly from the federal government) are forgiven eventually if someone had made payments on those loans 120 times. </span></span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-53997696481268584442023-04-30T01:17:00.004-07:002023-05-01T11:05:44.356-07:00Student wants improvements to Social Welfare Kinship Policy<p><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The social welfare system has taken on more children than they have the capacity for. The agencies do not have enough workers for the children that need their help. Another factor for the workers being unable to take in all the children in need is the difficulty of the work itself. Working in social welfare can be a very challenging and mentally draining with the stress that is put on someone. This is why there should be a policy that makes it easier on the system and workers.</span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Dear ______________,</span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I am writing to you to direct your attention to the problem we face in Illinois due to lack of staffing in the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). We do not have a sufficient number of child protection workers and child welfare workers, and as a result, the social workers in DCFS are given appallingly high caseloads—numbers that obscenely reduce the ability of those social workers to support the families and children. Social workers staffing DCFS already endure work that challenges their stamina and drains their energy, stressing and fatiguing even the most dedicated child welfare professional. You and your colleagues in the Illinois General Assembly must do something about this. You need to make the system easier on DCFS workers.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Kinship care is a great concept, but it takes many steps and a long time for a child to be placed with a relative. Making a policy that allowed the process of children to live with relatives easier would lessen the number of children in the foster care system. With so many children in need of help and little space in the social welfare system to do so, many children do not end up getting the help and die from neglect and/or abuse. The process that relatives must go through to be granted the ability to care for a related child is extensive. It takes a long time for their application to be granted, meanwhile that child is either stuck in an unsafe home or in foster care with people they do not know. </span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Does it really take a long time to place children with kin? I thought it was somewhat easier and swifter to find a family member who is willing to take a child. But, I suppose it might take a few more days, as one needs to track down all the possible cousins and siblings and aunts and uncles and so forth, whereas if there isn’t a preference for kinship care, then whatever family is next in line to take a child can immediately provide a home. But, wouldn’t it be the case that a child would stay as a “visitor” with a general foster care family while the DCFS workers try to find a kinship care placement? What exactly could be done to make it easier to place children in kinship care? There are risks to consider when placing a child in someone related to the parents who had their child removed, although in general kinship care is safer and better than other foster care placements, it’s not always better. You say “it takes a long time” without saying anything about why it takes so long or how long precisely it does take.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There are both positives and negatives to this policy, just like any other. The positives would <span style="color: #a40010;">include </span>that it will allow for more space in the system. The policy would make more foster homes available to children who may not have any relatives able to take them in. In 2018, there were almost 17,000 children in the social welfare system and many more that need the help of the agencies, but there was not a large enough capacity for them to do so (The Annie E. Casey Foundation). On the other hand, this would shorten the timeframe for background checks and home visits. With the process being quicker and easier, that would mean the relatives would not have as intensive background checks in the beginning. This could be combatted with more intensive background checks and visits once the child is placed in the home.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">About 2.6 million American children live in kinship care type households (79,000 in Illinois). You could give him all the information from Annie E. Casey:</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Foster Family Home - Non-relative: 7,719 in Illinois; 182,386 in the whole USA.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Foster Family Home - Relative: 9,045 in Illinois; 137,356 in the whole USA.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Group Home or Institution - 1,205 in Illinois; 38,799 in the whole USA.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Pre-Adoptive Home - 683 in Illinois; 16,559 in the whole USA.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Trial Home Visit - 736 in Illinois; 18,250 in the whole USA.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So, you are saying that the child protective worker who removes a child from a family should place the child in a sibling of one of the parents, or a parent of one of the parents, or a cousin, or an adult sibling, after some sort of cursory background check, and then do a thorough background check on that person after the child has been placed? You need to be very explicit about this, and honestly explain that there are risks if the parents are emotionally or mentally troubled, that this may reflect a family pattern. You then should say that despite that risk, you think the advantages of a quick and long-term placement with kin outweighs the risk, because even with a checked and trained and known foster care household, there is a risk of the foster parent maltreating the child.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 15px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">From an ideological standpoint, the policy would allow an easier way for children to be taken care of by someone they may know better and be more comfortable with. The children are scared when being taken to a new place and this would allow for the process to be a bit easier for them. It would also allow for the child to not have to move around the foster care system and allow for less stress.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You might make this more persuasive and memorable if you gave this person a narrative story about two children removed from a home, with one going to a family member, and the other going to a foster care family they have never met, to help give the reader a very direct feeling about what this would be like.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Politically, this would allow for the government system to have an easier time finding staff. With the job being so stressful, there is often overworked staff and not enough people for all of the children. Placing the children would also be easier with a better ratio of workers to children since some would be going into kinship care quicker. The policy would also provide less backlash to the government because more children would be able to be placed into safe homes. One consequence that stands out is the safety with the background check being shortened for placement. If the relatives are not ready for a child or also neglect and/or abuse the child, that can become a major setback. This is why as soon as the child is placed, a more intensive background and home check should be started to ensure the child’s safety.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I do not understand how you are making a connection between streamlining placement with kin when a child is removed from a household and reducing the caseloads of DCFS workers. Children in foster care, even if it is kinship care, remain on a DCFS worker’s caseload until they are either adopted or returned to a family, and even after being returned to a family or adopted they may remain under scrutiny of child welfare services. Is there a backlash against the legislature or the governor, and is that backlash based on children being placed (or left in) unsafe homes? </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I would like you to co-sponsor this policy. The action needed for this policy would be to come up with a quick and effective background check first. This would allow for a speedier and less stressful process of getting the child into kinship care. This would also allow for the system to start helping another child get into foster care if needed. After a background check is done, the child can move in, and a more intensive background check can start. Social workers should also make plans for home visits to ensure that the home is safe for the child and that they are being well taken care of. </span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This is pretty much what child welfare social workers already do. I think social workers make the plans for supervised visits with parents or guardians. I think your main point is that you want a change in policy to create two types of background checks, with one being a cursory and swift background check that allows DCFS to quickly place children in kinship care, before they have done a normal thorough background check. You also seem to want the process of doing background checks to be streamlined or made speedier. You could, for example, suggest that DCFS social workers should have access to the same technology and databases used by law enforcement. This is a policy that would achieve what you want, and I think it would be a good change. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>This policy would allow for the government to better their social welfare system and ensure safety for more children. The positives of the policy outweigh the negatives and solutions can be thought of for the negatives. Some solutions could be doing a house check right before placing the child or providing some necessary items for the relatives that are not prepared for a child in their home. The number of children dying from neglect and abuse would decrease due to the system being able to help more children. I think this policy could greatly benefit the social welfare system and allow for them to help many more children.</span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When you say the benefits or positives of a course of action outweighs the disadvantages or threats, and recommend the course of action, you generally ought to briefly explore the desirable and undesirable consequences of each of at least two actions. So, in a case like this, you want to describe the undesirable consequences of not changing the existing practices. That is, you want to describe problems we have today. Then, you want to stress that this policy would help us diminish the problems we have with the current situation. </span></p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You have done that in this letter, but it would be better to organize such a letter this way:</span></p>
<ol>
<li style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Ask clearly for what you want from your audience, a member of the General Assembly or the Governor or someone who is an Executive Director of the DCFS. </span></li>
<li style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Explain what the problem is now. You open with the problem of high caseloads and an insufficient number of social workers in DCFS to adequately handle the cases for which the DCFS is responsible. Normally this would be solved by increasing salaries or improving working conditions for the workers, and doing more to recruit, hire, and retain them. There might also be efforts to train more social workers in preparation for working in DCFS. You, however, are suggesting mainly a way to make the work of placing children into foster families easier by streamlining the initial safety background check so that children can be more swiftly placed in a kinship care situation, and then that placement can be confirmed after a more thorough background check and interview is completed. This does connect to the retention of social workers in DCFS, since this will presumably make their work easier. You should show some evidence that the current situation is burdensome, lengthy, and difficult. You make that claim, but I saw no evidence for how bad the situation is. Your argument would be stronger if you had provided some details about this.</span></li>
<li style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Explain the benefits of the action you are proposing. You do this fairly well. </span></li>
<li style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Consider the possible arguments against the course of action you have suggested, and counter those. </span></li>
<li style="color: #a40010; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 9px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Repeat the request. <span style="color: black;">Works Cited</span></span></li>
</ol>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px 28.4px; text-indent: -28.4px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">“Children in Foster Care: Kids Count Data Center.” <i>KIDS COUNT Data Center: A Project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation</i>, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, Apr. 2022, https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/6243-children-in-foster-care?loc=1&loct=2&msclkid=3931b6c5d82e144bb390d2dc07f8a711&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Foster+Care+-+Topics&utm_term=foster+care+questions&utm_content=What+is+Foster+Care#detailed/2/2-53/false/37,871,870,573,869,36,868,867,133,38/any/12987. </span></p><div><br /></div>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-51190091201630915622023-04-26T10:14:00.006-07:002023-04-26T10:14:36.476-07:00Student write a letter to state representative opposing a gun control bill<p> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px;">The Honorable Amy Elik</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">192 Alton Square Mall Dr., Suite C</p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">Alton, IL 62002</p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">Dear Representative Elik:</p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">I reside in Assumption in Christian County. I am writing to ask for your support in the lawsuit against House Bill 5471. I urge you to support all of the surrounding counties, citizens, and representatives that are participating in this lawsuit. They are fighting for their constitutional right. I urge you to communicate with your fellow Representatives and inform them of the unconstitutional things this bill evokes. </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">This is a good way to open your letter. You explain who you are, and immediately ask for something. Good approach.</p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">One of the many things that HB5471 bans are assault weapons. As defined by the NRA-ILA, an assault weapon is any weapon used in an assault. Webster’s dictionary defines a weapon as "an instrument of offensive or defensive combat." This means that I could classify anything as an assault weapon. Whether it be a baseball bat, a car, a hammer, or even a shovel. My bare hands could be considered assault weapons. Hands are used as a weapon in many domestic violence situations. Of course, most people automatically assume a firearm, such as an AK-47, when they hear the term assault weapon. By signing this bill, Governor Pritzker has taken away our second amendment right; the right to keep and bear arms. Not only does this ban “assault weapons”, but it also takes away the right to own, buy, or sell .50 caliber rifles and ammunition, as well as large-capacity magazines. I believe that Governor Pritzker is trying to prevent mass shootings. I believe the recent school shootings had an impact on his decision. </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">You move from your request to a justification for why it would be good for your audience to support the action you are requesting from them. In this case, you’re advocating for them to oppose a proposed law that would ban assault weapons, .50 caliber weapons and ammunition, and large-capacity magazines. That’s an odd choice in a policy and services class, since gun bans and the Second Amendment issues are rarely connected to social welfare issues, but let’s just go with how to argue against gun control of this nature. </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">Your target audience here is a Republican, and in general we can assume Republicans are sympathetic to arguments against gun control measures. However, in this case, did you do any background research on your target? Amy Elik has been a 4H Club co-leader, and she serves on committees related to elementary education, and she is a Rotarian and member of a Catholic school board. Her background is in finance: she’s an auditor. It seems to me that this particular person would be persuaded by arguments that were technical and empirical. She conducts audits. So, shouldn’t you phrase your opposition in terms of evidence and research? She also has children and cares about children (volunteering for 4-H), and wants her community to flourish peacefully and with prosperity (Rotary Club). </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">So, arguments that might appeal to a conservative (a Republican) with a profile and background such as Amy Elik… what would those arguments be? </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">In the first place, as a conservative, you probably need to make a stronger argument that a ban on a particular sort of weapon violates an essential right. You do this to some extent, when you complain about the vague wording in House Bill 5471. You should at least say this directly: “the bill is flawed in that it fails to precisely define ‘assault weapon’ and should be amended to clarify what is meant by ‘assault weapon’ or else it should be opposed more generally, which is what I hope you will do” could be a clear statement of what you want.</p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">She is an auditor and accountant. Maybe you could have approached the ban on high-caliber ammunition with a suggestion that the state could raise revenue while thwarting disgruntled lunatics from stockpiling an arsenal of massive bullets by taxing at prohibitive rates all .50 caliber ammunition. If the state took $4 for each .50 bullet sold in Illinois, wealthy gun hobbyists who enjoyed the thrill of shooting super-high-caliber guns could still indulge their pastimes in moderation, and enrich the state while doing so, but the causal madman out to purchase 100 rounds of bullets for his commando assault on the local Lincoln Elementary School might be forced to go for a lower caliber product. Let’s face it, no one buys .50 caliber weapons or ammunition for hunting or self-defense. These are weapons for hobbyists and enthusiasts who like the thrill of flinging massive amounts of lead at their targets. Maybe they would be useful if you were hunting whales or bull elephants or polar bears, but really, .50 caliber weapons and ammunition must be defended on the basis of two arguments: the fundamental argument based on the Second Amendment or the argument that these sorts of weapons are so overpowered that people planning to use guns to make a killing spree statement will use smaller weapons with smaller bullets. A <a href="https://vpc.org/regulating-the-gun-industry/criminal-use-of-50-caliber/"><span style="color: #0b4cb4; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">list of criminal use of 50 caliber sniper rifles</span></a> shows many crimes, but when you consider the tens of thousands of gun-related crimes committed each year, it’s clear that these sorts of weapons are not a gun of choice for most criminals. </p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">However, many of the people with “assault weapons” have no intention of doing any harm. I strongly believe that guns do not kill people. People kill people. These criminals will always find a way to get these banned weapons, whether legal or not. Drugs are illegal, but people still find multiple ways to get them. There are other ways to prevent school shootings, such as having trained guards at all entries, or security checks when entering the building. Another preventative measure would be to have teachers with conceal and carry permits that are able to be armed and ready. There is no need to punish innocent citizens that do not have the intent to harm others. I, as well as most of my family members, own guns. I do not have the intent to harm anyone unless I or my family were to be in imminent danger. My guns are used for hunting to feed my family. How is it constitutional to take away the guns of people providing for their families? Am I saying that these shootings are not detrimental to the state and country? Absolutely not, they are very horrible, and things need to change. However, I do not think that this was the right move. </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">As a social worker, you ought to be basing arguments on evidence. That’s part of our integrity and competence ethics. So, is there evidence to support your point? Hmm. Research on policies that might reduce mass shootings are suggestive that banning high-capacity magazines can reduce mass shootings (check out the work of David Hemenway at the Harvard Injury Control Research Center). The evidence doesn’t support your argument there, but perhaps the evidence is weak? Yes, we don’t have randomized controlled experimental research, and it could be that states that ban high-capacity magazines are also more likely to have better supports for families, better mental health care systems, and violence-prevention programs in their schools, so the association between allowing high-capacity magazines and having more mass shootings in a state could be a spurious correlation. Your argument that having teachers carry weapons in the schools is also not supported by what research exists (e.g., by the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions). Again, you can attack the quality of the research (always an option, since no research is perfect), but even mentioning that the evidence is against your argument probably makes the letter ineffective.</p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">I think where you might be able to make a stronger argument, especially to someone who is a volunteer worker with youth (Elik is active in 4H), is a discussion of how the most effective way to prevent violence would be to have a robust system of anti-violence education in K-12 schools. You could point out that whereas banning weapons gets into the questions of the Second Amendment, which are so important to you and many others, programs to improve the mental health of adolescent boys and create a culture of non-violence and mutual support in middle schools and high schools could be far less controversial and far more effective. Here, you would have more evidence on your side. It is possible to reduce criminal and violent behavior in a community, school, or neighborhood, but the interventions that can achieve this involve significant work on improving the social relationships among young people, giving them skills to handle conflict peacefully, instilling in young people an ethic that opposes interpersonal violence, and screening young people, especially those with behavior problems, for conduct disorder—and then offering the best treatment available for every youth with conduct disorder. A significant investment by the state in adolescent mental health and non-violence education in schools would have many other benefits beyond an expected reduction in gun violence, and would not have the political controversies or legal costs associated with it that can be expected with any policies that conflict with the Second Amendment. Also, as this is a social welfare policy and services class, suggesting such an alternative to a gun control measures would be more appropriate for this class.</p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">You might even accuse proponents of gun control bills such as HBHB-5471, of looking for easy fixes that are actually superficial and only effective to a trivial degree, instead of going for the more expensive and comprehensive interventions that would make a significant difference in reducing gun violence, domestic violence, child abuse, and behavioral problems in schools. A conservative who volunteers at 4H and is active on a Catholic school board might appreciate an argument that gun control measures are more a form of virtue signaling than a real dedicated effort to help children. </p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">I am asking you to work with your legislation and fellow representatives to help expand the support for the lawsuit against HB5471, and to ensure that as citizens of the United States of America, our second amendment right is upheld. </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">It is a good practice to repeat your request at the end of a persuasive letter, so the above paragraph is good.</p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">The Land of the Free, Home of the brave. We should have the freedom to own our guns and feel safe in our homes. Without adequate protection, some people feel unsafe. Have you ever thought of veterans? They were the brave ones that fought with those assault weapons. I am sure many veterans own them. By taking them away, Governor Pritzker is wiping away the reminder of all of the blood, sweat, tears, and sacrifices they gave to protect each and every one of us. I am calling on you as my elected representative to help expand and win this lawsuit against House Bill 5471. </p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">The allegation that a gun-control bill wipes away all the reminders of sacrifices made during war overstates the case to a point that undermines your argument. Why not simply point out that this bill ought to have made exceptions for veterans? Why not suggest an alternative that required extra licensing and training requirements for persons who want high-capacity magazines or assault rifles or .50 caliber guns, or a 21-year-old or 25-year-old age requirement? What about exemptions for muzzle-loading guns, which are often high caliber, but are hardly ever used (are they ever used?) in crimes these days? </p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">Thank you for your time and consideration. Please send your response to the address listed below. I will be watching to see how you advocate on this issue that means so much not only to me and my family but to gun owners everywhere.</p>
<p style="color: #a40010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">Another good technique is to request a response. So, bravo!</p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;">Sincerely, </p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-87027169077844625782023-04-25T22:48:00.007-07:002023-04-25T22:48:56.880-07:00Student tries to persuade politician to take action on the issue of ACEs<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 0px;">Persuasive letter advocating for a policy with an audience of a politician or government administrator.</p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been studied since the mid-'90s and recognition of their importance has grown over the past two decades. Exposure to ACEs alters cognitive development of children and is associated with many lifelong issues faced in adulthood such as increased risk of suffering from chronic health problems, impairment of executive functioning, poor self-regulation, and mental illness. ACEs are categorized as potentially traumatic events that occur in a child's life, and there are three forms of experiences: abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction. Whether it be physical or emotional abuse and neglect, mental illness, substance abuse, or violence in the family, these are all forms of toxic stress that count as adverse childhood experiences. One in six adults experiences four or more types of ACEs (CDC, 2021) and struggles as a result of trauma in their childhood. Exposure to adversities in their childhood is linked to increased health problems in their adulthood, including higher chances of heart disease, depression, cancer, and behaviors such as smoking, alcoholism, and drug use—all are linked with early death. While this affects many children and their futures, ACEs can be passed across generations, reaching beyond just themselves. </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The studies conducted about ACEs all conclude very similar results: despite the negative effects of adverse experiences, we can reduce their effects, and we have the power to prevent the outcomes by providing resources and educating health providers to recognize the risks of ACEs. I speak on behalf of those affected and call for action to prioritize preventative measures. You can do this by supporting passage of laws or regulations that require healthcare providers to become familiar with the research on ACEs and techniques for recognizing when children have experienced ACEs. Healthcare providers need to assess for ACES, know their potential impacts, and have the ability to provide resources to families and children to minimize the adverse impacts of ACEs.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">We are facing a great healthcare crisis; studies done on adverse childhood experiences show the link between toxic stressful experiences and health issues later in adult lives. We see the connection between these experiences and risky behaviors. Exposure to violence and other adversities has a great influence on the cognitive development of a child, and effects on the mind show through the health of the body as well. The best course of action to reduce the number of individuals facing health issues (as a result of ACEs) is to prioritize preventative measures and screenings through healthcare providers and those who work with children. I propose that you sponsor or co-sponsor any sort of policy that requires healthcare professionals to be trained to screen for ACEs so that we can identify children who can be referred to the resources that support their needs. Policies need to recognize the correlation between these negative outcomes and the root of the issue. </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The Centers for Disease Control identify six strategies for preventing ACEs: </span></p>
<ol>
<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>strengthen economic support for families; </span></li>
<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>promote social norms that protect against violence and adversity; </span></li>
<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>ensure a strong start for children; </span></li>
<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>enhance skills to help parents and youths handle stress and manage emotions and tackle everyday challenges; </span></li>
<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>connect youths to caring adults and activities; and </span></li>
<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>intervene to lessen immediate and long-term harms (CDC, 2020). </span></li>
</ol>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 18px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">By supporting the needs of the families, we not only prevent an ACE, but also such supports would benefit the economy. As explained by the information provided by the CDC, stopping an ACE before it starts would "benefit the economy and relieve the pressures on healthcare systems. ACE-related illnesses account for an estimated $748 billion in financial costs in North America each year. A 10% reduction in ACEs could equate to an annual savings of $56 billion" (CDC, Oct 2018). Furthermore, we know that intervention programs are already seeing results. The ACE Response Organization has found that: "Intervention programs with disadvantaged children are already demonstrating significant benefit-cost ratios, with $5.70 for every dollar spent on a child by the time the child became an adult aged 27 and, when projected into the rest of their lives, $8.70 cost savings in crime reduction (see<a href="http://www.aceresponse.org/img/uploads/file/specialsummary_rev2011_02_2.pdf"> Schweinhart et al.,</a><span style="text-decoration: underline;"> </span>2011)." (Ace Response, 2020). As a legislator, I understand your concerns about the costs of a policy and whether it can be afforded, but I can assure you that all the benefits that come from these preventative measures are well worth the investment of time and resources.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">As a politically involved social worker, the welfare of families is at the top of my list of priorities. When creating a solution to this issue, I cannot stress enough how important it is to look to the root of these adverse experiences. Rather than address the issue in the aftermath, we must allot resources to the prevention of ACEs in the first place. These adversities stem from strains in the family. For example, strengthening economic support for families was one preventative measure. Parents facing poverty are under immense pressure, and more often than not, the children feel the stress of that pressure on the family. In a much similar light, youth subjected to witnessing violence, substance abuse, and other negative exposures in their families are bound to be affected by the toxic stress of those experiences. The second and third strategies for preventing ACEs address these very issues. We need to promote positive parenting practices and help children experience a very strong and healthy start to their lives. In addition to supporting the children, providing resources and support for the parents is crucial as well. Healthcare providers who are trained to recognize the risk factors for ACEs must utilize their power to empower families to seek support and put to use the resources available. Not only should it be the job of healthcare providers, but any professional who works closely with children and families should be trained to evaluate and assess risk factors for ACEs—that should include staff at licensed daycare and early childhood centers, as well as all our elementary school teachers. Resources must be allocated to this cause, and training is so important because these professionals must be equipped and prepared to notice the potential risks. I believe the public has an interest in assuring that social workers, teachers, counselors, agency workers, and anyone who sees that they can make a difference in the lives of children receives training on ACEs and their prevention.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">So much of our future is dictated and influenced by the experiences we have in our primary years; while these experiences do not cement the course of our lives, they do live with us and have a profound impact on our mental, physical, and behavioral health. There must be an intervention to lessen immediate and long-term harm from the adversities faced. While there is a lot of evidence showing the positive outcomes of addressing ACEs, there is some opposition to the use of ACE testing and screenings. Some studies argue that informing children of the adverse effects of ACEs in their lives will paint a bleak picture of their futures. It is argued that it teaches these children to anticipate the continuation of hardships. Research from the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University stated that "[I]n some cases, the cumulative burden of multiple risk factors early in life may limit the effectiveness of later interventions, thereby making it impossible to completely reverse the neurobiological and health consequences of growing up poor (Shonkoff & Garner, 2012, p. 2255)" (Winninghoff, 2020) . This completely disregards the power of prevention work early in a child’s life and even interventions made after. There has been an overwhelming amount of research done that proves the many positive outcomes of the intervention. Even if there is a late intervention for the child as an adult, it means a world of difference to provide that support. However, I do want to reiterate how crucial it is that we now focus on creating policies that implement these screenings earlier so that earlier prevention can be accomplished.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">A policy for ACE prevention would realistically mandate screening in healthcare and child-family settings. There would also need to be mandated training for those workers to ensure their capability to identify these risks. This bill would enhance primary care and increase referrals to victim-oriented services and treatments. This would not only serve the children but also their families as well and bring awareness to the long-term potential risks of adverse childhood experiences. We must implement these risk assessments, screenings, and training in healthcare and family settings. This allows these professionals to notice the signs and intervene on behalf of the child and their families. By taking early action, we can minimize the effects of adverse childhood experiences. Not only will the mental, physical, and behavioral health of these individuals be positively affected, but we will also nurture better habits for future generations and educate and spread awareness of the effects of adverse childhood experiences.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">As policymakers and legislators, I am confident you can now see the significance and value of addressing this concern for the public health and safety of children and families now and in the future. If you choose to support a policy such as this, you are supporting a momentous movement—a policy that applies the knowledge we have now to better our society and care for future generations of leaders and citizens. By not being in support of this bill, your decision would be greatly consequential. It would mean the continuation of a toxic cycle now that we have the research and proof to show the repercussions of these realities. We have the power to reduce the number of children dealing with the aftermath of their adverse childhood experiences, prevent further hardships, and create a better future. I urge you now to take action and strongly support policies that implement ACE screenings in the previously mentioned areas. I even urge you to cosponsor this bill and work directly with it to make the change. With your support, we can begin to heal and proactively help the children in our society to become greater than their situations and help nurture better practices in policy that will make a real and significant change.</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Works Cited </span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px 28px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Bowen, E. A., & Murshid, N. S. (2016, February). <i>Trauma-informed Social Policy: A conceptual framework for policy analysis and Advocacy</i>. American journal of public health. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4815621/</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px 28px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018, October 19). <i>Preventing adverse childhood experiences</i>. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://vetoviolence.cdc.gov/apps/aces-training/#/resources</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px 28px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><i>Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</i>. (2020, September). Retrieved March 9, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/injury/pdfs/priority/ACEs-Strategic-Plan_Final_508.pdf</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px 28px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, August 23). <i>Adverse childhood experiences (aces)</i>. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/aces/</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px 28px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, April 6). <i>Fast facts: Preventing adverse childhood experiences |violence prevention|injury Center|CDC</i>. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/aces/fastfact.html </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px 28px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Winninghoff, A. (2020). Trauma by Numbers: Warnings Against the Use of ACE Scores in TraumaInformed Schools. Occasional Paper Series, 2020 (43). DOI: https://doi.org/10.58295/2375-3668.1343</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px 28px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">www.spiraldesign.com, S. D. S.-. (n.d.). <i>Give your support</i>. Policy. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from http://www.aceresponse.org/give_your_support/Policy-Examples_52_pg.htm#:~:text=Adverse%20childhood%20experiences%20(ACEs)%20are,high%20individual%20and%20societal%20costs. </span></p><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">You are being very thorough in this policy paper. I have some recommendations:</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">1) in addressing a political leader or executive in an agency, it is important to make your request right away. In this case, the letter sometimes refers to a bill, and sometimes just outlines a problem and suggests generally that certain types of bills or regulations are necessary. If you were to write an actual letter advocating this, I would start with:</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I write to you with the intention of encouraging you to support legislation, or introduce legislation, that would require state licensing examinations and state university curricula for certain professions to require content ensuring a range of professionals understand the concept of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), research about the ways ACEs harm individuals and society, prevention of ACEs, and how to help children who have been exposed to ACEs. Prevention of adverse childhood experiences will improve our society in many ways, and we need the state to use its regulatory power to encourage a widespread understanding of this topic.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Or, something like this:</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I write to you to share with you some information about the concept of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and what research tells us about the ways we might prevent ACEs, and what price we pay as a society if we fail to intervene to identify who has experienced ACEs. As a legislator, I hope that you will find this information inspiring, and since you serve on the House Health Care Licenses Committee and the Higher Education Committee, I hope that you will propose, co-sponsor, support, and advocate for any legislation that might address the concerns I raise in this letter.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">It's really important to do three things in most persuasive communication or assessments with people: identify yourself, establish some credibility by explaining what you are associated with or whom you represent, and explain what you are doing—describe what is your purpose and motive in the communication that follows.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Another thing is that you repeat yourself on a few points in this letter, which is a great technique in persuasive oral communication, but doesn't work as well in written communication. On a few occasions you mention the consequences of exposure to ACEs. Once might suffice. On a few occasions you explain that certain professionals need to be familiar with ACEs, know how to recognize risk factors, know how to prevent ACEs, know how to refer families or children exposed to ACEs to help, and so forth. The letter would be more persuasive and have a greater impact if you had edited and organized the paper so that this suggestion was clearly made once.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I think the overall letter follows a good strategy. You explain what ACEs are and describe how they damage people. You refer to research and scholarly sources with authority. Good techniques! You might have said something about the duty of government to promote the general welfare and promote domestic tranquility, and therefore the state should have policies to reduce exposure to ACEs. You do mention the cost savings projected from interventions to prevent ACEs, and that could have been done in close proximity to the moral argument made around assumptions of the purpose of government (promoting general welfare), since the cost savings are related to the duty of politicians to use wise policies that are efficient and spend revenue (taken coercively from the public through taxes) in ways that are clearly going to benefit the general public in significant ways. </span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">It would help if you had decided for yourself if you were going to write about the general problem, go over the suggestions from the CDC, and then say some general things about the types of legislation or policies that would help implement the suggestions of the CDC. Such a letter would have taken a general concept or problem and helped the politician audience understand how the ideas from the CDC could be translated into policies or laws a legislator in the General Assembly could vote to enact. Alternative, you might have stuck to one policy, such as mandate that higher education institutions in the state who offer degrees leading toward professional qualifications and licensure provided by the state teach particular subjects. You might have merely suggested that requirements of licensure require testing on the topic of ACEs, and assumed that this policy change would motivate the universities to cover ACEs in their curricula. It's easy to argue that the state should not tell teachers exactly what they need to teach their students, but it's difficult to argue that a state has no business setting up standards of competency and knowledge when conferring licensure through professional examinations. The state board of professions and licensure might defer to committee of academic and administrative experts in a field (professions should be self-regulating), but I believe the governor of the General Assembly could push regulatory boards to incorporate certain areas of assessment and requirements for competence in some subject areas.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">There is a counter-part to ACEs, which might be called a "Developmental Asset" approach (</span><a href="https://searchinstitute.org/">https://searchinstitute.org/</a><span style="caret-color: rgb(128, 1, 128); color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">)</span><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">. It seems to me that people in government need to be concerned with preventing children's exposure to ACES and also promoting children gaining access to the developmental assets. Prevent the bad; promote the good.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The intervention of screening to asses for risks of experiencing ACEs would be a good policy, I suppose. You are suggesting health-care professionals do this, which works to the extent that children see nurses or doctors. But, it seems to me the six preventive strategies suggested by the CDC imply a wider variety of interventions, and if you kept the letter in the realm of "explaining a problem, suggesting what might be done about it" you could have written about a wider variety of desirable policies. The letter comes off more as in the style of "explaining a problem and advocating for one particular technique to address the problem", which in this case, is the approach of mandating that people become better informed about the problem. This has been used in several issues in our state. There was a problem with unethical behavior by state employees, and so now all state employees are mandated to take an online ethics training course each year. The problem of child-maltreatment was identified as one that needed greater attention, and so the scope of who is defined as a mandated reporter of child abuse was greatly expanded, and a law or policy requires all the mandated reporters to receive training on recognizing child maltreatment. Sexual harassment and discrimination in workplaces worry us, and so the university has a policy that all employees must each year take an online course on sexual harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and so forth. So, there is a precedent for this sort of policy that you are advocating.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I appreciated the effort you put into the paper, the way you cited good sources, and the passion with which you wrote. I hope my comments can assist you in communicating with decision-makers in ways that will see your excellent ideas and suggestions catch the attention and support of your audience, because we really do need to go beyond this clichéd support of well-worn phrases such as "the children are the future" or "children are most important" and replace such blather with policies related to what you are trying to push in this letter—policies that directly address the things we know have the greatest detrimental (or positive) influence on human development. </span></div>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-56521020525557862062023-04-25T11:53:00.006-07:002023-04-25T11:53:40.300-07:00Local police shooting of man suffering from mental illness inspires student reaction<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="font-family: Helvetica; white-space: pre;"> </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica;">On March 5</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><sup>th</sup></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"> of 2021, police in Chatham, Illinois, responded to a call that a mentally unstable man was wielding a knife. During the interaction, the police officer shot Gregory Smalls, leaving the 30-year-old black man in critical condition. This senseless tragedy, which took place a stone’s throw from our own community in Springfield, illustrates the desperate need for reform in law enforcement policy and practice.</span></span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>One policy that I think should be implemented to prevent similar tragedies involves adding a mental health department to the police force and changing how officers are outfitted during routine patrols. Police officers are armed with guns but sorely lacking in the kind of training needed to deescalate volatile situations. While police officers do face danger situations, most of their interactions in the community would be better served by providing them with nonlethal means of subduing suspects. Instead of ready access to guns, police should be outfitted with Kevlar protection to minimize their risk. Possession of a gun does not actually reduce their risk; if their assailant has a weapon as well, they have no protection against the bullets. Thus, having a gun available in the vehicle as a last resort and body armor for protection is likely to result in less danger to both officers and suspects.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>However, no amount of body armor can provide the kind of training that would enable them to handle situations such as Gregory Small’s. Instead, trained social workers or other mental health professionals should be available to respond alongside their militant counterparts. If someone had been present who had knowledge of mental illnesses and how to resolve conflicts safely, Gregory might have ended the night in a mental health facility, getting the help he needed, rather than in critical condition in the emergency room.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>However, I also think that police training needs to focus on serving the community and bringing suspects to justice rather than the current mentality they seem to express, that of viewing members of the community as potential criminals to be uncovered rather than citizens who deserve respect and protection. Another important element to include in this new training is anti-bias education. I believe that many police are unaware of the implicit biases they hold that cause black citizens to be targeted and incarcerated at disproportionate rates as compared to their white counterparts. </span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>As a member of the African American community, the discrimination rampant in our criminal justice system is a source of anxiety and fear for me. Although I am lighter skinned and rarely experience being targeted by law enforcement, I have a family that is not. My brother, my nephews, and my cousins all have darker complexions, more obviously African hair textures, or both, and each news article reporting the assault or murder of Black citizens fills me with fear for my loved ones, and empathy for the survivors. Although being a target is rare for me, I too have been singled out by police in small rural towns. Black Americans face discrimination in many forms, and one of the single best ways America could show its commitment to ending racism would be to take decisive steps to prevent more black deaths at the hands of police. </span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;">It needs to be said: the treatment your brother, nephews, and cousins have experienced is wrong, and we should not accept it, and law enforcement professionals who care about their mission of protecting the public and the Constitution should also not tolerate this. You have been singled out by authorities because of your background, and that is wrong. </span></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;">The situation of Greg Small, Jr. hits close to home. He and his brother and dad were active in the Scout Troop I've volunteered with, and my sons camped with him and his little brother on many occasions. </span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;">There are a variety of biases that come into play in police interactions with persons who experience mental illness and also have African heritage. Anti-bias education that is based on good scientific evidence that it can reduce bias should certainly be part of training and professional development for law enforcement personnel. I think we also need to change the way police create a professional self-image. If they had more focus on "protect and serve" and a deeper ideological commitment to public safety, I think that would help. Other goals and ideals seem to be too powerful in may law enforcement sub-cultures.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;">Here are some good articles about this issue:</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://policy-class.blogspot.com/2023/04/reaction-essay-on-child-poverty.html"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;">https://policy-class.blogspot.com/2023/04/reaction-essay-on-child-poverty.html</span></a></span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.wandtv.com/news/springfield-police-department-begins-new-co-responder-initiative/article_76c8a624-9774-11ed-98f3-8b6e05363ae0.html">https://www.wandtv.com/news/springfield-police-department-begins-new-co-responder-initiative/article_76c8a624-9774-11ed-98f3-8b6e05363ae0.html</a></span> and <a href="https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/awards/15pbja-21-gg-04324-ntcp">https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/awards/15pbja-21-gg-04324-ntcp</a> describe the new initiative in Springfield, Illinois</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;">Peoria is doing something similar: <a href="https://www.wcbu.org/local-news/2022-02-14/peoria-police-unitypoint-mental-health-staff-could-respond-to-911-calls-together">https://www.wcbu.org/local-news/2022-02-14/peoria-police-unitypoint-mental-health-staff-could-respond-to-911-calls-together</a> </span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;">Here is what is going on in Nashville, TN: <a href="https://www.nashville.gov/departments/police/executive-services/alternative-policing-strategies/partners-care">https://www.nashville.gov/departments/police/executive-services/alternative-policing-strategies/partners-care</a> </span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;">Eileen Molloy Langdon wrote an article about this for an Illinois law-enforcement trade magazine (see page 12: <a href="https://www.ilchiefs.org/assets/Command/2020_November_Command_FINAL_optimized.pdf">https://www.ilchiefs.org/assets/Command/2020_November_Command_FINAL_optimized.pdf</a> </span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-size: medium;">VICE did an article on this a few years ago: <a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/y3zpqm/these-cities-replaced-cops-with-social-workers-medics-and-people-without-guns">https://www.vice.com/en/article/y3zpqm/these-cities-replaced-cops-with-social-workers-medics-and-people-without-guns</a> </span></p>
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<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-62623636849581255932023-04-25T11:05:00.006-07:002023-04-25T11:05:39.912-07:00Reaction Essay on Child Poverty Documentaries<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-indent: 36px;">After watching the documentaries regarding child poverty in America, I had a lot of strong emotions. My first emotions had to do with the most obvious issues of children being poor, hungry, and homeless. Nobody, especially children, should have to experience those kinds of things in a developed country like the U.S. I also got strong waves of emotion watching children take on adult stress and roles. Shaun, for example, admitted that at age 13, he had already taken on a father figure role in his home. He, as well as some of the other children across the documentaries, also admitted to suppressing their feelings when it came to their hardships. These children felt not only the stress coming from their parents, but also took it upon themselves to hold in their own stress in order to save their parents from that added despair. You could just see how pained their parents’ pain made them. It was also striking to hear these children describe adult things such as making money/food stretch and timing and foregoing bills. The children’s stress was so visible, and it hit home.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-indent: 36px;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>When thinking of solutions to the issues surrounding child poverty, child tax credits come to mind. While I’m sure these provide periodic bursts of relief for struggling parents, I also realize that the money they are refunded cannot be saved and applied to the coming year’s worth of expenses. There are bills to pay, necessities to buy, etc. Even more, the child tax credit program was implemented far before either of these documentaries were filmed, and not one person mentioned them as being helpful at all. In my opinion, families, especially those headed by single parents, need a more frequent, reliable form of stimulus. For families such as the ones featured in these films, anything helps. An extra $50…$100…$300 dollars would’ve kept food on their children’s plates, or maybe it would’ve kept the hot water on. I truly believe that families below and near the poverty line need more of a cash safety net. Not only could it help provide life’s necessities, as people in a developed country should have, but it can also help stimulate the economy. More cash means more dollars spent in the market. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Speaking of the market, I also couldn’t help but notice the fact that some of the families in the documentaries lived in what appeared to be ghost towns. One of the children walked through her town scrounging up aluminum cans for money, and she could point to countless empty buildings and say, “this used to be…”. As she did this, I realized that the absence of businesses in her town also meant the absence of jobs. This child in particular talked a lot about how her mother had to be very careful when it came to using her car’s gas, but what if she didn’t have to go far to make money? Similarly, another family drove two total hours a day to get their father to his job. Unsteady unemployment is a huge contributor to poverty. We need more well-paying jobs, especially in under-stimulated areas of society (which also happened to have the most poverty). </span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>We’ve talked about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and how detrimental they can be on a child’s development into adulthood. The children in these films dealt with bullying, food insecurity, housing insecurity, and parents’ tempers. These children had already experienced as much, if not more, stress than others see over the course of their entire lives. It was clear, to me at least, that these children were extremely pessimistic about their own life outcomes. In the film that revisits some of the children 5 years later, not a single one showed up happy and full of life. They were tired. They wanted out. They hadn’t seen success. Having a happier, healthier society begins with improving the lives of children. And to do this, I think we need to offer families and local economies more support. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Documentaries we watched included:</span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAxQltlGodA" target="_blank">Growing up Poor in America</a> (2020)</span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/documentary/poor-kids/">Poor Kids</a> (2017)</span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/documentary/poor-kids/#video-2">Poor Kids</a> (2012)</span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I am so glad you mentioned the child tax credit. Increasing that and making it refundable was done as the 2020 documentary was being filmed, so the documentary did not capture the way this increase in consumption affected the lifestyles of those families. We know statistically that the increases in SNAP benefits and the child tax credit made a tremendous improvement (decrease) in child poverty (if we use the measure of poverty that examines post-tax / post-benefit actual consumption). Having been in farmers markets selling produce in the summer of 2021 I can testify to the huge increase in purchasing power the benefits created (money that partly came to me as I was selling expensive peaches, berries, and cherries to families that now could afford them for their children). </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">You also point out the importance of considering the environment and community </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(128, 1, 128); color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">economic </span><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">life. As social workers who are interested in ending poverty, we must be concerned with the well-being of <span style="caret-color: rgb(128, 1, 128);">employers</span>, businesses, entrepreneurs, local banks and credit units, and we must support main street civic boosters and chambers of commerce (up to a point), because we have common interests in the well-being of our local economies, for it is the local economy that offers a good chance for people to find their way out of poverty. </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">You also paid attention to the way poverty inflicted ACEs on the children, and you are aware of how this torment and stress experienced by the children degraded their quality of their human existence. By tolerating the existence of poverty for children in our society, we are stealing years of life from them. The stresses of poverty raise health problems, which in turn shorten the lives of adults who experienced poverty as children. </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">When our society finished the project of defeating the ethno-nationalist imperialism of the Nazi and Japanese empires, there was a near consensus that we should create a world in which all people would be free from the tyranny of poverty and deprivation (one of the four freedoms: freedom of speech; freedom of worship; freedom from want; freedom from fear). We have lost our way, and instead of conquering the belligerent dictator "poverty" and his goons "want", we accept them as useful allies in our society to compel workers to take unpleasant jobs and submit to the caprice and whims of their employers or would-be employers. We have the power to end poverty in our society, and with it, we would end a significant portion of the social ills and medical or behavioral problems our citizens face. The quality of our workplaces would improve, and our tax burdens would not substantially increase in a way that altered our standards of living. Yet, we lack the vision and political will to end poverty, and the children in these documentaries damn us all by the tragedies we force them to experience by our unwillingness to restructure our economy to remove the scourge of poverty.</span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-87225553965820821172023-04-25T10:26:00.005-07:002023-04-25T10:26:50.337-07:00The End of the Pandemic<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Lato Extended", Lato, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;">On January 30</span><span style="font-family: "Lato Extended", Lato, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 0; position: relative; top: -0.5em; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></span><span style="font-family: "Lato Extended", Lato, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Lato Extended", Lato, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;">of this year the Biden administration announced that COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) and national emergency declarations would be ending on May 11, 2023. These pandemic declarations were announced at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. They helped with various policies such as the expansion of telehealth and free COVID testing. It helped with coverage with Medicare, Medicaid and CHIP, as well as private insurance, speeding up the acceptance of medications and treatments so that patients can be treated.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Lato Extended", Lato, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 12px 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">To say that the last 3 years have been hard is an understatement. 2020 was one of the roughest years of my family’s life. We tried our best to stay safe. We stayed home that whole year except for trips to the grocery store. The following year I lost my mother due to complications resulting from COVID-19. Shortly after she died, my brother died similarly. As vaccines began to roll out, we became more and more comfortable out in public. We finally got COVID at the end of 2022. The recovery was not bad and we were testing negative relatively quickly. In 2023, my family and I are so ready to move on and live our lives. We wear masks less often. We keep them close by for trips to the store or if we’re not feeling safe in our environment.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Lato Extended", Lato, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 12px 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Despite being fed up with COVID-19 and the precautions, ending emergency declarations is scary. Sure, if I only account for how my family is doing, it makes sense. We are well equipped to deal with our health thanks to our insurance and decent jobs, but only considering my family would be short-sighted. The problem is, there are plenty of people out there who cannot get insurance. There are plenty of people out there who either cannot get the vaccines available or flat out refuse them. People who mask in public are in the minority. I cannot count how many times I’ve heard nasty coughs around me. I’ve had that nasty cough. We are living in highly infectious times and the people who will be most affected by the end of these declarations will be the poor. All of this is scary. We need to support each other as we continue to live with COVID-19.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Lato Extended", Lato, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 12px 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin: 12px 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I had hoped that the pandemic would change our culture so that persons suffering from cold symptoms (or any signs of illness) would adopt the habit of wearing facemarks to protect those around them from the particles exiting their bodies as they exhale, sneeze, or cough. Sadly, the pandemic seems to have made many people lose their rational faculties (or did they ever have any?), and the wearing of masks became a political and identity issue. </span></p><p style="margin: 12px 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">One thing I learned from the pandemic was that medical science isn't nearly as good as I had supposed, and the tribal cognitive biases that make people dismiss any facts or findings that contradict their beliefs are strong within the scientific community. I used to have respect for editorial boards at top medical journals, but they published some fake articles in 2020, and had to retract those. Faculty at Stanford University were publicizing so many findings based on ridiculously bad studies that I started to think Stanford must now be a joke. With Ivermectin, there were many promising studies and findings, and people rejected those as if they were 16th Catholics rejecting some heresy (faith and tribal loyalty guided their rejection of the evidence, I believe). But then, as the evidence for Ivermectin weakened to a point where it now seems to have generally only a trivial benefit, if any, the true-believers in Ivermectin continued to hold to their faith. With masks, there was likewise a tribal division. Even the Cochran Collaboration, for which I had previously held the highest respect, published a review led by Tom Jefferson that was of very dubious quality, showing us that we don't really know what effect wearing masks has. People who supported Ivermectin and were opposed to masks then started saying things like, "there is no evidence that masks work" when in fact there is quite a bit of evidence that they do, just as there was for a time quite a few promising studies about Ivermectin. They hated it when people ignored the evidence in favor of Ivermectin or cited flawed studies to claim Ivermectin was useless, but then did exactly the same when it came to considering the evidence for the benefits of masks. My conclusion is that people's attraction to tribal identities around controversial issues clouds their judgement even more than I had assumed, and I've always thought of myself as fairly doubtful about the rational abilities of humans (I always look both ways when crossing 6th and 5th, although they are one-way streets).</span></p><p style="margin: 12px 0px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> I'm so sorry about your loss of your mother and your brother in the Pandemic. Many students in my classes lost family members to COVID, and my friends in some of the hardest-hit areas (like New York City in the first months of the Pandemic) lost a huge percentage of their friends and acquaintances. It was like the AIDS thing in the 1980s, but compressed into weeks rather than years. I think of the over 1 million extra deaths we had in the USA from COVID and medical complications related to the pandemic, and the scale of the pain is beyond my comprehension. I liked listening to those obituary stories NPR and the PBS News Hour was providing to look at the lives of people who were lost in the pandemic, and hear about all these wonderful people and the grieving relatives who mourned them. COVID was a horrible way to die, and my tendency to approach the problem as an intellectual game of numbers and forecasts helped distance me from the horror, and these stories on NPR and PBS helped bring me back to my humanity.</span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-85693391452181183462023-04-25T09:59:00.003-07:002023-04-25T09:59:29.716-07:00Student is alarmed by child welfare inadequacies<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> I began doing research on the social welfare system’s policies and practices out of curiosity and found some interesting information. As the system is growing, the agencies are failing to meet the demands to provide the services needed. The Child Welfare Information Gateway says that the “<span style="background-color: white;">system was never intended to serve the vast numbers of children and families that are involved in the system today” (Chibnall et al., 2003). The number of children that are being neglected and abused are increasing each year.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>With the child welfare system not being able to fulfill the needs of the number of children who are neglected and abused, children are suffering and dying. The system needs to find a solution and provide better practice due to them reaching their capacity of the children they can help. I believe more policies must be put in place to better the chances of more children being helped. </span>The Child Welfare Information Gateway believes that the difficulty working for the agencies plays a role in the issues of the system (Chibnall et al., 2003). The system needs to be further looked into and given more attention for them to better their agencies.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>If the system got more attention, I believe the policies and practices could be much improved. A possible policy that could help better the system is having improvement on the ability for relatives to care for the children. This would allow for less children to enter into the system and be taken care of by relatives that they may already know. This would also benefit the children because it would make them more comfortable and in a less intimidating environment.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Works Cited</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px 28.4px; text-indent: -28.4px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Chibnall, Susan, et al. “Children of Color in the Child Welfare System: Perspectives from the Child Welfare Community.” <i>Implications for Policy and Practice - Child Welfare Information Gateway</i>, 2003, https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/otherpubs/children/implications/. </span></p><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Your key point is that we do not put enough public attention on the situation in DCFS, or child welfare and child protection services in general. Yes, the people of Illinois essentially have custody of the 19,000+ children in foster care within Illinois. These are our children. And, we should all be concerned that we have problems attracting and retaining child protection and child welfare workers. I wonder how we can make more citizens care about this issue? How would public concern manifest? Would public alarm lead to an increase in funding for DCFS so that that agency would be staffed with 3,400 social workers instead of 2,900, and salaries would increase and caseloads would decrease to make the work more attractive? Could DCFS hire 100 specialized child carers to act as foster parents for children who have such extreme behavior problems that only specialized and highly trained persons should serve as foster parents to these children? I wonder what the target should be for improving the child welfare system in Illinois, and more widely throughout the nation.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">There are some good resources for finding some facts about the child welfare system.</span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">First of all, since you mention children dying and suffering, you should consult the most recent Inspector General's Report on child deaths in Illinois. Last year (2022) had a huge spike in children dying while being involved with DCFS. There were 171 such deaths, but 134 of those were just the normal deaths attributable to disease and accidents that you would expect anyway. However, in 37 cases, the child welfare system did something wrong that may have contributed to the situation. Between July 2021 and June 2022 the DCFS examined 97 child deaths in Illinois and found that 18 of those children were murdered and 30 died in accidents. By the way, the state spends about $1.5 billion on DCFS, and the agency has approximately 2,900 employees. </span></div><div><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/dcfs-inspector-general-report-child-deaths/">https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/dcfs-inspector-general-report-child-deaths/</a></div><div><a href="https://dcfs.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/dcfs/documents/about-us/office-of-the-inspector-general/documents/oig-annual-report-2023.pdf">https://dcfs.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/dcfs/documents/about-us/office-of-the-inspector-general/documents/oig-annual-report-2023.pdf</a></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The Annie E. Casey Foundation seeks to maintain its strong reputation for having good information about indicators of children's well-being in the United States, and you can examine the situation in each state. I see that their most recent count of children in foster care showed 376,926 children in foster care in 2021. That is the lowest number since 2012, so the trend is for fewer children to be in foster care (in 2017 there were 428,133 children in foster care). We're back down to about 1 in every 200 children in our society living in foster care. </span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> </span><a href="https://datacenter.aecf.org/data/tables/6242-children-ages-birth-to-17-in-foster-care?loc=1&loct=2#detailed/1/any/false/2048,574,1729,37,871,870,573,869,36,868/any/12985,20455">https://datacenter.aecf.org/data/tables/6242-children-ages-birth-to-17-in-foster-care?loc=1&loct=2#detailed/1/any/false/2048,574,1729,37,871,870,573,869,36,868/any/12985,20455</a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The Children's Bureau at the Administration for Children & Families hosts the website you mentioned: the Child Welfare Information Gateway. It doesn't have so many statistics and facts and figures, but you can find many reports on children welfare services and protective services. </span></div></div><div><a href="https://www.childwelfare.gov/catalog/topiclist/?CWIGFunctionsaction=publicationCatalog:main.dspTopicsDetail&topicID=6">https://www.childwelfare.gov/catalog/topiclist/?CWIGFunctionsaction=publicationCatalog:main.dspTopicsDetail&topicID=6</a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-40353539572122457992023-04-25T08:53:00.002-07:002023-04-25T08:59:49.454-07:00Student Reflection: I, Daniel Blake<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">So far, this semester has been packed full of very useful information. We have read a lot of different information this semester. We have also watched multiple videos and films. However, the thing that stood out most to me of all was </span><i style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">I, Daniel Blake. </i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">This was a film about an older gentleman named Daniel Blake. Daniel had lost his beautiful wife. Daniel had also suffered from some health issues such as heart problems. Daniel had to take quite a bit of time off of work per doctor’s orders. Therefore, he was struggling a little bit financially. He went to apply for benefits to help get him through this time. At the time he was going to apply, he saw a younger woman with her two children getting kicked out of the office. She was a little bit late to her appointment, so they told her that they could not help her. Ultimately, she would have to come back at a different time. This really upset Daniel, so he ended up talking to this girl. Her name was Katie and her children were Daisy and Dylan. Katie was struggling. She had to move away from her family and they were new to the area. Daniel and Katie formed a bond, and he helped her fix up her house. He got to know her and her children more. They both struggled to get the benefits they needed. Daniel did get the help of a lady named Ann; however, she got in trouble for helping him. He had to fill out the information and go hand it out to employers just to get benefits. We see Daniel and Katie go to the food bank at one point. Katie was so hungry that she just opened up a can and started eating. This seemed like a breaking point for her. Daniel was always there for her. She ended up shoplifting feminine products because those were not available at the food bank. Ivan was the security guard who caught her. He said he could help girls like her. He ultimately got her to be an escort. When Daniel found this out, he did not take it lightly. He confronted her about it and did not want her doing this at all. She got upset and did not want him to come around anymore. However, Daisy came to Daniel’s apartment and wanted him to come back. Katie and Daniel ended up talking again and she was going to his appeal with him. As he was in the bathroom he collapsed and died. The ending showed Katie reading Daniel’s testimony at his funeral.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>This film was extremely eye-opening to me. I was skeptical at the beginning since it was a British film, and things are different there than in the United States. However, this film was so good. I never really thought of older widowed people struggling to get benefits. Daniel did not really know how to use the Internet. He struggled a lot in that aspect and had to ask for help more than once. The social worker that made Daniel look for all of those jobs knowing he could not work was really horrible. Ann was so helpful to him. The rest of them however were not. They were hostile towards him for no reason at all. I felt so terrible for Katie. She was trying so hard to be a good mother. She even made Daniel a plate instead of herself. She just ate an apple. She was starving herself to make sure that her kids were fed. It broke my heart to see her break down in the food bank. Then Daisy told her that the kids were making fun of her for that. Katie was really struggling, but Daniel was always there just out of kindness. The fact that Katie resorted to stealing feminine hygiene products was absolutely heartbreaking. As a woman, I hate to think about all the people that cannot afford those products needed. When Daisy told Katie that her shoes were broken, she knew she was going to have to find the money somehow to get her a new pair. Seeing the paper say escort was so sad. She knew she somehow had to provide for her babies. I could not imagine feeling like that. I think she was so embarrassed that Daniel found out. Daniel’s statement was so powerful. The system is so BROKEN, and this shows that is not just in the United States. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I actually loved <i>I, Daniel Blake. </i>This film gave me a much better understanding of how difficult it truly is to get benefits. These benefits are not just handed out as easily as people think. I am so lucky that I do not relate to either of these stories. However, I know as a social worker, I will have to see situations like Daniel and Katie’s all of the time. I think that this film did a wonderful job of preparing me a little bit more for my future as a social worker. I would definitely recommend it to anyone pursuing a degree, or interested in, social work. </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I hope that the persons in the welfare office portrayed in <i>I, Daniel Blake</i> were not supposed to be social workers. I think one point of the film is that persons with skills and knowledge who could have helped Daisy or Daniel are often not present. Instead of a nurse or physician assessing Daniel's disability in the opening scene with the phone call, a “qualified medical professional” who is clearly not qualified for any sort of interaction with a client is pushing Daniel along through the survey in a confrontational and dehumanizing manner. Instead of social workers with ethics and a client-centered approach in the welfare office we have officious bureaucrats who offer no sign of compassion or concern for the people they serve. </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">People seem to hold either of two types of approaches to the welfare safety net: one approach is to deny benefits as much as possible, and be very strict. The assumption is that people probably do not deserve benefits and many of these people need to be pushed to become self-supporting and independent, instead of demanding that they ought to be supported through the work of others (taxes redistribute money earned so that it can go to the public benefit such as welfare services, right?). The other approach is to point out that most people seeking benefits genuinely need help, and the economic system and health care system cannot offer some of these people any decent opportunity to become self-reliant. Therefore, we ought to be generous and meet people's needs with courtesy and respect. The film is trying to point out that the abstract idea of being "tough on people who are relying on welfare" so that they can "achieve self-reliance and independence and get jobs" may sound laudable (surely when possible for adults, being self-supporting is better than being dependent on others), but in practice is inflicts brutal attacks on the dignity and human rights of suffering souls. </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Daniel has been ordered by doctors and real health experts to avoid stress or exertion. He certainly <i>must</i> <i>not</i> work. But Daniel was for years a care-giver to his wife, who evidently had a long decline in her health, and he spent his life savings taking care of her, despite living in a country where health care is provided by a National Health Insurance scheme. He is a hard-working carpenter and care-giver, and he can't help himself but use his skills and labor to help others (like Katie and her children). He is clearly deserving. Yet, the system torments him with rules and requirements that make no sense in his circumstance. Katie is caring for two children, and seems to have little education (she has tried to attain a university degree, but has been thwarted by lack of support for that endeavor) or any special skills beyond housekeeping and cleaning. She is honest, clever, and hard-working, but cannot find a job because the economy does not offer her any work that would suffice to support her family. Both Katie and Daniel clearly deserve the benefits of a social welfare system. Both are willing to work, but are unable to do so because of forces beyond their control (health problems for Daniel, and a bad economy without opportunities for Katie). Rather than helping them achieve a dignified life or recognizing the equal value and rights of these two, the welfare system denies either of them the access to basic human rights or dignity. The system essentially kills Daniel.</span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is worth recalling here:</span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.</span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-88820637764451680582023-03-08T15:28:00.005-08:002023-03-08T15:29:27.559-08:00A student writes about bias in child protective services<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> <span>I have always been quite passionate about this field as my future career, but as of the past two years, I have found an even greater interest in policy practice and advocacy in social work. My interests were sparked by my research into the child welfare system and the need for reform, and they have only grown with the courses I've taken here. While looking online for articles on the topic, one stuck out to me that shared many of my concerns and connected to more ideas I’ve been focusing on in my child advocacy courses. In the news article, "<a href="https://www.aclu.org/news/racial-justice/the-child-welfare-system-needs-an-overhaul" target="_blank">The Child Welfare System Needs an Overhaul</a>," by the ACLU, they point out the extreme economic hardships and systemic racism at the root of many issues in child welfare cases at the federal, state, and local levels. The author points out the correlation between child welfare and poverty, as well as trends in cases relating to race. For families experiencing extreme poverty, statistics show they are more likely to be charged with neglect. Children of color are more likely to be reported, despite making up a smaller percentage of children overall.</span></span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Disproportionality can be caused by factors other than racial bias, although we ought to suspect racial bias is a factor. For example, their are 4.1 million African-Americans (9.3% of all African-Americans) living under 50% of the poverty rate, and 7.6 million non-Hispanic European-Americans in the same condition of desperate deprivation (3.9% of all non-Hispanic European-Americans). Using the supplemental poverty index, about 4.5% of “white alone” children were in poverty in 2021, whereas for “Black alone” the childhood poverty rate was 8.1%. If living in desperate poverty is a strong predictor of childhood maltreatment (either because of poverty or because the conditions that lead to poverty also lead to heightened risks of child maltreatment) we might expect child maltreatment to be about double the rate among African-Americans than it is among European-Americans. One of the key sources used by the ACLU report was the excellent work of Maguire-Jack, Font, and Dillard (2020), which somewhat controls for bias in actual incidence of maltreatment due to poverty by using only a sample of investigated cases. In their multivariate model (see pages 54-55), where they controlled for other possible causes (child and county and reporter characteristics), they found that substantiated maltreatment was 3% higher for Black children, 20% higher for American Indian, 15% higher for multiracial, and nearly 8% higher for Hispanic children. For the decision to make out-of-home placements among children with substantiated abuse, again in the multivariate model that controls for other things, Black children were 15% more likely to be removed, American Indian children were 23% more likely, and multiracial were 43% more likely, but Hispanic children were nearly 3% less likely to get an out-of-home placement.</span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The county context in which CPS workers investigate child maltreatment reports also influences whether they substantiate or decide on out-of-home placements. Again, this is the study by Maguire-Jack, et al. (2020) in which only investigated cases are used, so the bias in reporting should mostly be controlled for aside from the possible biases in having lower or higher thresholds for deciding to report and deciding to investigate. Counties with higher rates of single-parent headed households had higher rates of substantiated maltreatment. Counties with higher poverty rates generate lower findings of substantiated maltreatment for African-American children (a 15% drop) whereas rural counties raise rates of substantiation for Black children by 7% (but also raise substantiation rates for white children by 10%). Having a high percentage of single-parent households increases out-of-home placement. Having high poverty rates in a county lowers rates of out-of-home placements (for Black children by 15%; for White children by 7%). </span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There are probably several things going on with the high association between poverty of a household and neglect. Persons with mental or physical health problems that would make them more likely to remain poor may also have impaired parenting abilities. Single parents who are forced to earn a livelihood to support their children while also trying to live normal lives of dignity may not have adequate time or resources to meet social expectations of good parenting, and having a single parent (one income-earner in the household) makes a family far more likely to be poor than having two parents. Poverty may impose difficulties and stresses on parents that diminish their ability to be adequate parents, either directly by limiting their resources or indirectly by stressing them out so much that their brains are damaged by the stress. The association between poverty and unemployment and substance addiction runs both ways as well, and substance abuse is a leading contributing factor in child maltreatment. And, yes, social workers and family court judges may have a bias against persons who are poor. Americans tend to dislike poor people, so I expect some bias there. Hopefully in our classes at UIS we are diminishing the biases our students may have. </span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Some of the disparities are probably caused by bias, other disparities are caused by a system that prioritizes “personal responsibility of the parents” over the well-being of children in a way that violates my ethical principles about the inherent dignity and equal value of all persons. Other aspects of the disparities are probably attributable to conditions that are not caused by cruel systems or bias, but are rooted in individual characteristics that contribute to poverty and to a risk of maltreating one’s children. </span></p>
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<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Maguire-Jack, K. (2014). Multilevel investigation into the community context of child maltreatment. <i>Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 23, </i>229 –248. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2014 .881950</span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Maguire-Jack, K., Dillard, R., & Font, S. A. (2020) Child protective services decision-making: the role of children’s race and county factors. <i>American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 90</i> (1), 48-62. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000388">https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000388</a> </span></p>
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<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The ACLU report has this:</span></p>
<p style="color: #343434; font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 24px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Neglect, as defined by the child welfare system, is often a proxy for poverty-related circumstances and is the primary reason for child welfare involvement in the overwhelming majority of cases.</span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Neglect is far more common than abuse. People more often fail to meet social standards for parenting by failing to do what is expected rather than doing something that is considered horrible (e.g., physical, psychological, or sexual abuse). Yes, neglect is often caused by a parent’s poverty, but it is often caused by other factors that are indirectly related to poverty or are not related at all to poverty. Persons should not lose custody of their children because they are poor, and we should not create systems in which poor parents are unable to reasonably provide for the basic and essential needs of their children. </span></p>
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<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The main case made in the ACLU and Human Rights Watch report is that children can be removed from parents or guardians who fail to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care, hygiene, nutrition, and supervision. Low income parents may not have the financial means to supply adequate levels of these things, and they may be so busy trying to earn the money required to supply these things that they are unable to find the time or mental attention to give adequate supervision or ensure that hygiene and nutritional standards are met. Considering that the United States has no laws to enforce Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we put the burden of supplying an “adequate standard of living” for children on their parents. Parents who cannot do this can lose custody of their children as a result. It would be more in line with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights if the state (society in general) ensured that children (and their parents) received an adequate standard of living, or the means of attaining such a standard, and then neglect would mean that a parent had actively failed to distribute the materials essential to an adequate standard of living that they had received from the state. But, as things stand, we have a system in which parents really can lose their children because they have not been able to find adequate and affordable housing or cannot afford adequate and nutritious food. </span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Should a poor family that refuses to seek medical treatment for their children and also refuse to register for Medicaid be considered perpetrators of maltreatment through medical neglect, or does this undermine parental autonomy? How about a family that qualifies for SSI, or SNAP benefits, and yet the parents are too proud to apply for those supports, and so their children go hungry and are malnourished? </span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">There is a great disproportionality among children of color in the foster care system, and a racial bias perpetuates even further harm. This is seen within the child welfare system as well as society as a whole. Our history has caused disparities in income, education, employment, and more for POC communities. This racism has been embedded in the policies of our system, and institutional bias contributes to this inequality. The article states that indigenous and black families have a higher percentage of investigations than white families. This, among other statistics, confirms the trends of disproportionality within the system, thus harming more children than helping. The article also mentioned that despite an already high rate of investigations for families in poverty, numbers still show black families are more likely to be investigated even in communities with low poverty. Poverty plays a significant role in these trends: poor families have a higher rate of investigations and welfare interventions. However, there is often a misinterpretation of poverty vs. neglect:</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">"The overwhelming majority of cases, nearly 75 percent in 2019, include allegations of state-defined neglect, which is inextricably linked to poverty. Parents struggling with limited resources, unable to pay rent or secure stable housing, or working long hours to make ends meet, are judged unfit and neglectful" (Naveed, 2022).</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The child welfare system needs to support parents struggling rather than being judged and punished. Families in poverty are often lacking the resources they need; it isn’t that they can’t take care of their children or that they are purposefully neglectful; it’s that they need more assistance and can thrive much better with a system that lifts rather than punishes. This is a system that pushes families into the impossible situation of "having to overcome poverty to stop being monitored and to reunite with their children, without providing them the resources necessary to do so" (Naveed, 2022). Although the evidence for the link between poverty and maltreatment is overwhelming, poverty is the result of long-term racism and structural adversity that have fostered risk factors that contribute to mistreatment in POC families. There is much work needed to undo the systemic biases within these services; policies must be created to better serve these communities. Reform is needed. The information in these articles and documents from my classes about the child welfare system reinforces the idea that change is desperately needed. I have always felt this way, and learning more about it in class makes me feel more strongly about it. These inequalities were what intrigued me most about the child welfare system and further encouraged me to look into policy practice within this discipline. As I reflect on the curriculum, I hope to learn more about what actions can be taken and how I can incorporate that into my future career goals.</span></p>
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<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">“Reform is needed”. Yes, we want to extinguish the biased determination of maltreatment and the biased tendency to remove children. But what about this—what if the objective situation is that instead of a negative bias against Native American and Black families, those families are being treated exactly as they ought to be, and instead what we have is a positive bias, where European-American families are too often getting away with maltreatment by having cases as “not determined” or “unsubstantiated” and the real problem is that we ought to be removing more European-American children out of their households? What is the logical basis for thinking the bias is mainly a negative one against certain groups, and not so much a positive bias favoring European-American parents? The research cited in the article you read is convincing that there is bias, and the bias is influenced by county characteristics as well as household characteristics, but should we be “more lenient” with Native American and Black households or “more stringent” with European-American households? </span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I conceive of the determination to remove a child or substantiate an allegation of maltreatment as being in many cases quite easy to make, and bias wouldn’t enter into the picture. Probably we have the tail end of a normal curve of parenting quality. Given that the National Incidence Surveys tend to show maltreatment is experienced by about 2% to 3% of children each year, that fits fairly well with the idea that parents who are behaving two standard deviation lower than normal in “parenting quality” are generally maltreating their children. So, probably parents who are 2.2 standard deviations or more below median parenting are easily substantiated, and parents who are more than 2.8 standard deviations below normal are also cases where it’s easy to see the the child should be removed—no bias need enter the picture. The problem arises with parents who parent at a quality level that is 1.9 to 2.2 standard deviations below median: it’s a closer call there, so bias could cause systematic error in determinations or substantiations of maltreatment allegations. And likewise with the decision to remove: that’s going to be an issue in the cases that are around 2.6 to 3.0 below median in parenting quality. Given the expected slope at the tail end of a normal distribution, we’re looking at a situation where bias can enter the picture at a narrow band along the continuum of parenting behavior quality, but this narrow band is at the level where the greatest number of cases will occur. (A lot more parents are parenting at 1.9 or 2.0 standard deviations below median quality than are parenting at 2.4 or 2.6 standard deviations below median quality). </span></p>
<p style="color: #4a004f; font-family: Cochin; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 12px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The tricky thing about these reforms that are going to reduce the bias is that they are going to address how the child protection workers deal with the cases that are close calls or in an area where the decisions are tough. The cases that are clear-cut and easy to determine are not the cases where bias gets a chance to enter the decision-making, at least normally (no doubt there are occasional cases of egregious bias, but child protection workers are generally well-enough trained that these should be exceptional cases). <span style="color: black;"> </span></span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-212755522263510471.post-62287656307236427182022-12-13T19:11:00.003-08:002022-12-13T19:11:20.495-08:00A student urges support for reducing the age children can be left alone.<p> <b style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; text-align: center; text-indent: 36px;">House Bill 4305</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">At what age can children be left at home? Families consisting of two working adults may find this question challenging. Even so, a single adult household might contemplate leaving a young child in the care of older siblings. Illinois statutes offer guidelines families are obliged to follow as Illinois residents when they decide who may watch young children when no parent can be home. The guidelines set by DCFS help establish and create a safe transition for leaving a child at home.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">Parents face many circumstances when they may opt to leave their child at home. Situations may arise when school is not in session, after-school programs are not readily available, or a last-minute family emergency demands that a parent be elsewhere. Other external reasons include employers failing to offer flexible work schedules, which can contribute to a parent needing to leaving a minor at home. Also, employers may not offer personal time off. Families facing financial hardship are more likely to be desperate to persist in jobs where work hours are inflexible and inconvenient, and these same economic circumstances may encourage them to leave children at home unsupervised at earlier ages, given the cost of babysitters and child care. The demands to provide for the economic well-being of a household can conflict with other duties to children and compel a parent to leave a child alone at home to meet family expenses. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">Parents should assess the child's mental, physical, and emotional well-being and abilities (Illinois Department of DCFS Children & Family Services [DCFS], 2014). Children with special needs can heighten risks of immediate danger if left unattended for a lengthy time. Parents should determine situations that warrant risk at home. For example, can windows be easily opened? Older homes might have metal cranks or hinges that can adhere tightly due to age. Also, does a minor have access to a responsible adult in case of an emergency (DCFS, 2014)?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">Currently, the Illinois DCFS constitutes that leaving a minor, 14 years and younger, alone for an unreasonable period could be regarded as neglect (DCFS, 2014). State Rep. Sue Scherer, D-Decatur/Springfield, introduced House Bill 4305 after families urged age modification for minors allowed at home independently (Sharkey, D. 2022). The age change would impact many dedicated working families. House Bill 4305 hopes to amend the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 and change the minor age to 12 years (2022).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">According to Illinoispolicy.org, Illinois tops the nation's age for minors allowed to stay home alone (Sharkey, D. 2022). Single adult households might face circumstances that merit DCFS's input based on child welfare situations. DCFS can decide if a child has been neglected and is at risk (DCFS, 2014). Families working hard should not have to face penalties in raising a family. House Bill 4305 will allow the state to modify the age to stay at home from 14 to 12. Families then decide if a child is capable and responsible at home alone.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-indent: 36px;">Many 12-year-old and 13-year-old children already return home from middle school and find the house empty until their parents return home from work after 5:00pm.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>A practice that is so widespread and usually harmless should not be grounds for finding that parents have been neglectful. The age at which children are mature enough to handle themselves at home without their parents presence is set by cultural expectations and social conventions, and as such, the law should be permissive with a preference for erring on the side of allowing parents to overestimate their children’s abilities rather than erring on the side of coercively punishing parents for making reasonable decisions. There should be some lower limit to allowable ages to leave children home alone, but that limit ought to be at the low end of a reasonable range, around age 12, and not so high as age 14. If you agree, please contact your State Senator and State Representative and urge them to see that House Bill 4305 is passed during the upcoming lame duck session before the new legislative assembly is seated.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>Eric Hadley-Iveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07349423480178819276noreply@blogger.com0