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For International Women’s Day week, the monthly picket of mothers and families fighting to reclaim children unjustly taken by the Phila Department of Human Resources, is joining the Global Women's Strike’s call for society to “invest in caring, not killing.”
Thursday March 6, 3-5pm “DHS: Give Us Back Our Children!” Picket & leafleting outside Phila Department of Human Services1515 Arch St., Philadelphia
Sponsored by Justice for Families * Every Mother is a Working Mother Network * Global Women’s Strike * Women of Color in the Global Women’s Strike * Payday men’s network * Winvisible- women with visible and invisible disabilities* Wages Due Lesbians * Info 215-848-1120 * on the day: 267-254-4467
Bring signs, pots & pans, noisemakers – we want them to know we’re out there! And we want the public to know what is going on.
We will also announce the launch of our Dossier, which documents the pattern of abuse in the child welfare system including case summaries, statistics, and more. Anyone who has experience with DHS is invited to contact us with their information (can be anonymous). The Dossier will be released to the public on Mothers Day.
What’s going on? Across the US, families are losing custody of children – that is, children are losing their families – at an alarming rate – Philly’s rate among the highest. Instead of helping with housing, childcare, legal needs, or abuse, DHS takes kids particularly from families that are poor, of color, young, older, alternative – though most kids are far better off & safer with them than in foster care. Once in the system, it is a difficult, lengthy and sometimes impossible process to get them back.
The DHS budget is almost $900 million per year, financing a system that destroys the lives of children and tears families apart instead of helping them. We are demanding that that money, and other resources being drained by the war and military budget, be used to provide housing, childcare, legal support, drug treatment and other services families need. 30% of children could be reunited with their families immediately if the families had decent housing.
The Global Women’s Strike Our picket is part of actions for the 2008 Global Women's Strike, with participating organizations in over 60 countries, demanding the return of military budgets to the community, beginning with women, the main carers of people and the planet. Women & girls do 2/3 of the world's work, most of it unwaged. $1 trillion/year is spent on the military worldwide, more than half by the US. 10% of this would provide the essentials of life for all: water, sanitation, basic health, nutrition, literacy, and a minimum income.
We demand that governments “Invest in Caring, Not Killing”.
Global Women’s Strike’s international demands:
For more info on the Global Women’s Strike see www.globalwomenstrike.net.
Please come out on March 6! Info 215-848-1120 On the day: 267-254-4467
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DHS: Give us back our children! A monthly Picket of Mothers & Families whose children have been unjustly taken by DHS. Supporters welcome. Next two dates in 2008: Thurs Feb 7 3-5pm Thurs March 6 3-5pm Outside Phila Department of Human Services, 1515 Arch St |
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* Fact – Out of every 1000 impoverished children in their jurisdiction, Chicago removes 6 children from their homes, NY removes 11, LA removes 14. Phila removes 40! (Nat’l Coalition for Child Protection Reform) * Fact – Black children are more likely to be taken from their homes, to stay in protective custody longer and never to return to their parents. (Cincinnati Post) * Fact – A Children’s Hospital of Phila study found that when toddlers have similar injuries, they were 3 times more likely to be reported to DHS if the family was African-American or Latino. (Children’s Hospital press release, Oct. 1. 03) * Fact – 30% of foster children could be home right now if their parents had decent housing (Nat’l Coalition for Child Protection Reform)
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| Ms Tilli Ayala, Native American & Latina, had her 4-month-old son whom she was breastfeeding & her daughter taken away because of actions by the father whose relatives now have the boy. She sees her son, now 4, only three hours a week in supervised visits, while the father has unlimited access. She has met every DHS goal re housing, jobs & parenting courses, yet her parental rights are permanently threatened. She began the picket outside DHS in May 2005. |
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Ms Denise Smith, African-American, lost custody of her 4 children as a result of a childcare provider who was found to be negligent. The children have been split up, some taken to California and put in the care of a father who had not had contact in 3 years. Even though she met every DHS goal, has never been involved in drugs or abused her children, and fought hard to get her children back, she still lost parental rights. |
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Sponsored by Justice for Families 215-806-7593 justice1peace@yahoo.com
Supported by
Every Mother is a Working Mother Network 215-848-1120
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Sign the petition online: www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/364936228
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