CITY VIEWS: OPINIONS and ANALYSIS
Cuomo Commission Offers Smart Way to Fight Youth Crime
Roderick Jenkins |
The proposed reforms will help keep our communities safe, even as they treat young offenders fairly.
Administration for Children's Services
Struggle Amid Progress: To Be LGBTQ in Foster Care
Sara Sugar |
New York City is working to build a foster-care system that welcomes gay and trans youth. New training has made gains against still-common cultural and religious hangups among caseworkers and foster parents.
Child Welfare
Group Amplifies Complaints by Foster-Care Parents, Kids
Audrey McGlinchy |
An advocacy group in Harlem says it is hearing more and more from parents and children who believe the child-welfare system has been insufficiently responsive to their complaints.
CITY VIEWS: OPINIONS and ANALYSIS
Custody Battle Delays Mean Kids Grow Up in Family Court
Dawn Post |
A shortage of judges means some children and their families spend years in the system, exacerbating whatever problems brought them there in the first place.
Activism and Volunteerism
Juvenile Justice Reform Falls Short of Goals
Helen Zelon |
The Close to Home initiative was supposed to move detained kids to less restrictive settings and improve their ability to complete their education. That hasn’t happened.
Government
Looking After the Welfare of Child Welfare Workers
Rachel Blustain |
Burnout among child welfare workers hurts kids in foster care. In 2011, an effort was launched to give New York City caseworkers the support they need to stay on the job.
Education
Advocates to de Blasio: Fix Childcare System
Rosa Goldensohn |
The mayor-elect’s campaign was focused on pre-K, but some want a focus on day-care for younger kids. The city’s current system has empty seats but also faces overwhelming demand.
CITY VIEWS: OPINIONS and ANALYSIS
Racial Disparities Color Media Coverage of Child Abuse Victims
Dawn Post |
Whether they are victims of child abuse or lose a parent to murder, kids in some neighborhoods get treated differently when faced with tragedy. Readers and viewers must demand better.
Activism and Volunteerism
Young Men's Initiative Shows Promise—and Limits
Helen Zelon |
Mayor Bloomberg gets credit for making young black men a government priority. But there are questions about YMI’s scope, scale and future funding.
Brooklyn
Planning a Defense for Violence on the Basketball Court
Sara Sugar |
Detecting a spate of shootings associated with basketball games—often involving pre-existing beefs—organizers in Brooklyn are teaching kids and coaches to “hold the ball” when violence threatens.
