The governor’s announcement was the clearest possible statement that we are all in this together. It is a watershed moment in recognizing undocumented residents as full participants in California life. This desperately needed assistance recognizes that undocumented Californians are integral to our communities and our economy, and fills gaps left by a federal assistance plan that excludes millions of Californians.
Conway Collis, End Child Poverty California President & CEO
End Child Poverty California Co-Chair Conway Collis issued the following statement today following Gov. Newsom’s announcement of $125 million in financial assistance for undocumented Californians:
“The governor’s announcement was the clearest possible statement that we are all in this together. It is a watershed moment in recognizing undocumented residents as full participants in California life. This desperately needed assistance recognizes that undocumented Californians are integral to our communities and our economy, and fills gaps left by a federal assistance plan that excludes millions of Californians.
“The Governor’s aid package is similar to the one within the California Covid-19 Anti-Poverty Stimulus Package proposed by End Child Poverty CA and the Dolores Huerta Foundation, and we thank him for his bold action.
“We expect this initial funding to be quickly exhausted, so we look forward to working with our leaders in Sacramento to ensure we keep help coming to where it’s needed most. We and others have proposed ongoing financial assistance for the lowest-income Californians. The need is clear for these types of payments to continue into the future, because all Californians deserve to be healthy, fed & housed.
Join Congressmember Karen Bass, Civil Rights Leader Dolores Huerta, GRACE/ECPCA CEO Conway Collis and movement partners this Thursday, 3-26-20, from 9:30-10:30am, for an End Child Poverty California Movement Action Call as we address the COVID-19 crisis together. [MEETING LINK & CALL-IN INFO BELOW]
What started as a health crisis, COVID-19 is quickly turning into an economic catastrophe for vulnerable Californians.
We’re mobilizing support for the Anti-poverty Stimulus Package, sharing resources and addressing the COVID-19 crisis together. Congressmember Bass will update us on the Federal response (unless the House is called into session and she needs to vote at the time of the call).
The Action Call is open to motivated Californians across the state and End Child Poverty CA Movement partners and collaborators. Join us and share the link: https://www.endchildpovertyca.org/action-call-2/.
Congressmember Karen Bass speaks at an End Child Poverty rally, April 2017. Photo credit: Valerie Goodloe
Call-in & Video Conferencing Information
This is a Zoom Video Conference with Phone-In Option Time: Mar 26, 2020 09:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
One tap mobile +16699006833,,478095623# US (San Jose) +13462487799,,478095623# US (Houston)
Dial by your location +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 301 715 8592 US +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) +1 253 215 8782 US Meeting ID: 478 095 623 Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/adJY3QoPFj
The following one -time payments respond to the current COVID-19 crisis for California’s most vulnerable children and families. They also provide an immediate economic stimulus as research shows that 80% of cash supports are spent locally.
Prior to the pandemic, California families were already faced with health, hunger, and housing instability. COVID-19 has exacerbated this crisis. We need to provide immediate cash assistance for vulnerable families NOW to allow parents and caregivers to stay home with their children, purchase necessities, and keep their families housed as California addresses this health and economic crisis.
Proposal # 1 Child Poverty Emergency Safety Net Payment
Families living in deep poverty will be hardest hit by the COVID-19 economic downturn. This safety net payment will help increase stability during this health crisis. A one-time cash payment of up to $1,200 would be paid through the counties via the general assistance program to families with at least one child ages 6 or under and with income and earnings at 70% of the Federal Poverty Line, irrespective of immigration status.
Cost estimate: One-time GF cost of $150 million. Counties would also incur administrative costs, which would be reimbursable from the state.
The Cal EITC is well positioned to provide cash to lower-wage workers. We propose that all taxpayers eligible for 2019 expanded California EITC would be eligible immediately for a second credit equal to one-half the size of the credit they were eligible for in 2019. In addition, ITIN filers should be included in this payment.
Cost estimate: One-time GF cost of approximately $550 million.
Proposal #3: Emergency Assistance Payments.
One-time emergency assistance from the state to the counties to provide a necessary supplement for the General Assistance program. The funds would be distributed by the counties to households with children having incomes of less than 70 percent of the federal poverty line who are not otherwise eligible for assistance through the first two proposals. This includes families with a recent job loss, were unable to work in the prior year or have major health expenditures. The funds would be available on a one-time basis for emergency needs such as food, prescription drugs, rents needed to avoid eviction, or car repair.
Cost Estimate: Variable, but recommended GF allocation of $300 million. Need for Immediate Implementation Through Recommended Payment Mechanisms
Given the urgency of the moment, the priority is to quickly and efficiently get cash in the hands of low-income families with children who are in dire need of immediate resources to protect them from the drastic COVID-19 economic downturn. Existing safety net programs such as CalWORKs and Cal EITC are designed to promote self-sufficiency and upward mobility over the long-term, but there are barriers to quickly modifying these programs to provide short term emergency relief.
Many Californian’s experiencing deep poverty are not able to participate in existing safety net programs for various reasons, including citizenship status (which limits eligibility for public programs) and disabilities of parents or children. According to estimates prepared by Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality, approximately 80 percent of children in families living in deep poverty do not participate in CalWORKs. Moreover, the emphasis on job training and employment is less relevant in today’s extraordinary circumstance, since near term job prospects are extremely limited.
The Los Angeles launch and press conference will feature civil rights leader Dolores Huerta, Senator Holly Mitchell, and others. In collaboration with the Dolores Huerta Foundation, we’re proud to announce the primary sponsors for this event are St. John’s Well Child and Family Center and Crystal Stairs.
Join us at 10 a.m. for snacks and welcome. The press conference will start at 10:30 a.m. and will be followed by neighborhood community outreach. This is a free event.
Help make the L.A. 2020 Launch great:
==> Share the Facebook event page, and mark that you’re interested and/or coming:
The End Child Poverty in California campaign is sponsored by GRACE (Gather, Respect, Advocate, Change, Engage) and the End Child Poverty Institute to end extreme child poverty and reduce overall child poverty in California. In close partnership with the Dolores Huerta Foundation, we are working to increase support and community engagement across the state. We invite you to be part of the movement to address the highest child poverty rate in the nation by implementing simple solutions to a complex issue. Read our 2020 priorities.
Child poverty is not a fact of nature. Together, we’ll make sure ALL our children are healthy, fed, and housed.
Before the pandemic we had approximately 2 million children in poverty and 450,000 childrenin extreme poverty. The pandemic has exacerbated the situation for families working hard toget ahead. In 2019 the state budget invested $4.8 Billion in End Child Poverty Plan recommendations and preserved and built on them in 2020. We still have much work to do.
#EndChildPovertyCA 2021 Movement Priorities
Coordination of Services: Continue to improve the cost-effectiveness of programs that support families, focusing on community-based, collaborative, research-based solutions.
Child Care: Improve access and availability to childcare and address the childcare crisisas exacerbated by the Pandemicby adequately meeting the business needs of child careproviders. Child care is a lifeline to keep parents working and families stable.
Housing: Increase overall housing availability and reduce evictions so that children and families don’t face the trauma and stress of homelessness, exacerbated by the pandemic recession.
Health Care: Strengthen and expand community based and school-based health careclinics to meet families where they are so that they can get the care they need. Within anequity framework provide COVID vaccines in high needs communities and ensure healthaccess for ALL families and children irregardless of immigration status.
Safety Net: Continue to expand on the CAEITC the Young Child Tax Credit. Supportefforts to expand Pandemic EBT sothat families can feed their families, during thiseconomic crisis. Increase cash policies so that families can meet basic needs (i.e.,increase SSI payments, UI for ITIN filers, etc.…)
Download a printable version of the 2021 #EndChildPovertyCA Priorities
The End Child Poverty in California campaign is sponsored by GRACE (Gather, Respect, Advocate, Change, Engage) and the End Child Poverty Institute to end extreme child poverty and reduce overall child poverty in California. In close partnership with the Dolores Huerta Foundation, we are working to increase support and community engagement across the state. We invite you to be part of the movement to address the highest child poverty rate in the nation by implementing simple solutions to a complex issue.
January 13, 2020 – On Friday, Governor Gavin Newsom released his proposed 2020-2021 state budget (click for full budget or budget press conference). At GRACE and End Child Poverty California, we look forward to working with our leaders to ensure that a key missing element — the Child Poverty Tax Credit — is implemented this year, as well as other End Child Poverty Plan recommendations. ALL of our children deserve to be healthy, fed, and housed, and they simply can’t wait another year.
Read the statement from our CEO Conway Collis:
“The Governor’s proposed budget is wise in many ways, but fails to lift 450,000 children out of extreme poverty. We need the Child Poverty Tax Credit now. 450,000 children are waiting on Sacramento to fully enact California’s End Child Poverty Plan. We have to make sure it happens.
“California’s children living in extreme poverty are struggling to survive as their families face homelessness, food insecurity, and toxic stress. The lives of these children are at stake. If we don’t act now, they, and state taxpayers, will pay the price for their entire lives, whether through higher child-welfare and foster-care costs, increased homelessness, higher school drop-out rates or lost revenue resulting from unemployment and under-employment.
“The Governor wisely proposes increased support for families in homelessness, to help keep struggling families in their homes, as well as nation-leading health care measures, in this year’s budget. Those investments build on last year’s transformative increases in health care, tax credits for families, childcare and early childhood education and other End Child Poverty Plan recommendations.
“This year’s budgetary caution is understandable given recession concerns and potential federal cutbacks. But it is unconscionable to leave 450,000 California children mired in extreme poverty. These children represent an unaddressed crisis of human suffering that will only add stress to the state’s budget.
“We look forward to working with the Governor and the Legislature between now and May to further enact the End Child Poverty Plan, including the Child Poverty Tax Credit, which addresses the root causes of poverty, stabilizes families, and ultimately saves California billions of dollars each year. The 450,000 children living in extreme poverty need help now. Since we have the resources and a cost- effective plan to lift them from poverty, we have an obligation to do so.”
-Conway Collis, President & CEO of GRACE and End Child Poverty California
Brian King of the Fresno Street Saints, speaks in Fresno on May 18, 2019, as part of the End Child Poverty Bus Tour. Read Brian’s full speech below. Photo credit: Fernando Rios
Brian King is the director and co-founder of the Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission Street Saints. He grew up in poverty on Chicago’s South Side. Brian served as a member of California’s statewide Lifting Children and Families Out of Poverty Task Force that created the End Child Poverty Plan. As our CEO Conway Collis said, “It’s with Brian King’s leadership that we’re going to get this done.”
Brian joined us for the entire 2019 End Child Poverty in California Bus Tour, and spoke multiple times, including this powerful speech in front of his hometown crowd in Fresno.
***
Praise God. I’m appointed to speak to you guys first about
what I’m experiencing. So first without any further ado, let me give thanks to
God for me even being here. It’s only through Him that I’m here. You know, they
wrote me off and said I would never live to be 15, but it’s only thanks to God
that I’m here a couple ticks away from 60.
Then I want to give thanks to my mother and mothers like her who went to bed hungry so that we couldn’t taste what poverty felt like. And so for the mothers who have put themselves in those positions and continue to do so to this day, I want to salute you guys: mothers who have went without so that we can.
Brian King, director, Fresno EOC Street Saints, May 2019
I want to talk to you on a couple of deals – with two hats –
the first hat is poverty. I am a direct descendent of poverty. I have
experienced all the DNA of poverty. I’ve went from an 8-year-old gang member,
to 14-year-old drug addict, to an incarcerated teenager, to a 21-year-old
homeless addict walking around on the South Side of Chicago just waiting to
die.
I have cleaned up, and went back to the streets and became
one of the most significant and largest drug dealers in the city of Chicago. I
have everything that’s made up of a young African-American male that’s walked
the impoverished community.
But then I came to Fresno and I found a man name Jesus. And now the other hat I wear is a battle against poverty.
And my question to us in Fresno is “How do we feed the world, but starve our kids?”
It is a tragedy that we live in the second highest concentrated poverty area in the nation. And we’re not alone. In our travels, I’ve been able to go through San Diego to here. And what I’ve seen has really broke my spirit. I met a young 26-year-old lady in San Diego named Monique that has all the DNA that I have from these impoverished neighborhoods. But she has a 4-year-old kid that she’s trying to raise on $540 a month.
But she’s fighting.
And she was so excited to see the [End] Childhood Poverty bus come up that she encouraged me to keep on. Because sometimes this deal gets hard. But as we continue to go on, I’ve seen the governor come to a community where the community came around and said, “No more.” We’re going to stand, and we’re going to fight, and we’re going to figure this whole deal out.”
Then we went and met a senator that’s working with a group of ladies that held hands and talked about how we can overcome.
And so as we continue to walk through this path of created suffering—through Pomona and through our travel halfway across this state, I’ve been able to sit an hour with people on the bus and sit in hotels in the evening and just look at the glimmer of hope that we come together to try to end poverty throughout the whole state.
There is a battle ahead of us. But coming from impoverished neighborhoods, we battle every day.
And we know this ain’t nothing but a step. So we’re here today to say, “Fresno, we need you. We need you to go out and use your influence. We need you to begin to go. And those of you who’ve not registered to vote, we need you to go register. We need you guys that sit in City Hall and that sit in these lobbying seats to begin to lobby. We need our elected officials to come together and hold hands with San Diego, with L.A., with Weedpatch.
We were there this morning. And I sat there and I watched a community that had almost nothing, give us their best. They cooked breakfast burritos for us. They had chips for us, water for us, and they don’t even have their own clean drinking water. But they took part, and they took place in this fight that we’re having.
Members of the Fresno EOC Street Saints at the Fresno stop on the End Child Poverty Bus Tour, May 18, 2019.
And so as we begin and continue our journey, I want to first salute you guys for coming out and taking time out your busy days to be a part of this deal. And from our Fresno Street Saints family, I love you guys. Thanks for showing up for us.
We are truly in a time and space in history, that we can right it. And so as you continue to hear the speakers that’s coming up today, I ask that you open your hearts, that you listen, because this is a message that’s coming from across the state – a universal message that we have to begin to save our children. And like all you guys, I am 1,300% with us lifting our children out of poverty.
But again, my biggest concern is our children are dying poverty. So we just ask that you listen patiently, and that you hear that there is a solution, and we want to give you that solution.
***
California has 450,000 children living in deep poverty.
We’re also the only state with a plan to END it. Already in 2019, $3.4 billion
has been put toward the End Child Poverty Plan in the 2019-2020 state budget.
Investments to end child poverty will pay for themselves over time as parents
and children become healthier in body, mind, and spirit, and are able to have
higher lifetime earnings.
There’s more work to do. We have the research, the plan, and
the momentum to end child poverty. Now we need the political and moral courage
to see it through.
It’s the season of giving, and we’d like you to think about your gifts. The voices, donations, and talents of our community — big or small — make this movement strong. And everyone has something to give as we build a California where all children are fed, healthy, and housed.
2019 has been a powerful year for the End Child Poverty CA movement.
Thousands of you made our movement a huge success this year.
➡️ You spoke up for the End Child Poverty Plan.
➡️ You showed up in Chula Vista, LA, Pomona, Weedpatch, Fresno, Salinas, Oakland, and Sacramento.
➡️ You shared your stories in front of crowds of hundreds of people, in your communities and educated legislators and other officials.
Throughout the year, the powerful testimonies of parents cut through the politics to make the needs of our communities clear. Your stories stick with us — stories like the one from Ana, who spoke on behalf or our partner Mission Promise Neighborhood. Her words continue to inspire us:
“[I’ve learned] not to keep my voice within myself but speak it out to share my knowledge so other families can advocate for their children, because we are all advocates. We just need to… speak up and say, ‘This is what I need for my children, and all of the children.’”
Community members like Ana are building momentum to power this movement in 2020. Will you chip in to power it, too?
Make sure the Child Tax Credit is expanded to help children and families in extreme poverty have adequate food, housing and other essentials. It’s the most potent piece of #ThePlan to END extreme child poverty in our state.
Partner with civil rights leader Dolres Huerta, co-founder of the United Farmworkers and founder and president of the Dolores Huerta Foundation to build a grassroots army of Californians mobilized to end child poverty in our state for good. On-the-ground community teams will serve as local action hubs to free our families from the cycle of poverty.
Organize events and rallies around the state. We’re going to remind our leaders that child poverty is a moral and political choice — not an inevitability — and we’re serious about ending it.
Expand our network so that we’re impossible to ignore. We’re more than tripling the number of partners and community members involved to #PassThePlan and end extreme poverty for 450,000 California children.
Will you chip in to help us achieve our goals? Every dollar makes a difference.
We’re filled with gratitude this holiday season — and we’re also aware that there are a lot of expenses this time of year. If you can’t donate right now, please forward this email to one or two people to let them know that there’s a place for them in our growing movement to END extreme poverty for our children.
For the last forty years I’ve been involved with serving youth caught in the juvenile justice system and foster care, helping to overcome educational disadvantage and to provide desperately needed healthcare. We can end the abject poverty that so often leads to these human crisis and enormous state costs. For children in abject poverty, in and out of homelessness, their needs can’t wait. Please join us.
With gratitude,
Conway Collis President and CEO GRACE
End Child Poverty CA is a movement to build a bright future for ALL California kids and free our families from the cycle of poverty. If someone forwarded you this email, sign up here to get updates from End Child Poverty CA.
November 2019 — Our movement to end child poverty in California is entering a critical new phase — and we want you to be a part of it from the start.
End Child Poverty California is partnering with civil rights leader, founder, and president of the Dolores Huerta Foundation, Dolores Huerta, to build a grassroots army of Californians ready to end child poverty in our state for good.
This is a big moment for our movement — and a huge moment for the future of California kids. Help us mark this milestone by sharing the news with your friends today!
We couldn’t be more proud to partner with a woman who has dedicated her life to showing people the power they have. Dolores Huerta founded the United Farm Workers movement along with César Chávez. She coined the slogan, “¡Sí se puede!” And in 2002, she established the Dolores Huerta Foundation for grassroots community organizing to empower people to fight for the changes they want to see in their communities.
Here’s what Dolores has to say:
“The great social justice changes in our country have happened when people came together, organized, and took direct action. It’s time for us to come together to end this child poverty crisis that’s destroying our children’s futures. We can do this. ¡Sí se puede!”
We have one big goal: to fully end extreme child poverty within the next four years. Then we’ll keep going to make sure ALL California children have the chance to thrive.
End Child Poverty CA Roundtable in San Bernardino with Dolores Huerta, hosted by Assemblymember Eloise Reyes at Community Action Partnership, with attending organizations including Child Care Resource Center, Golden State Opportunity, San Bernardino County Preschool services, and sisters of the Daughters of Charity
Here’s what we’re asking you to do next: Share about the End Child Poverty CA + Dolores Huerta Foundation partnership. Let your people know what’s going on. We’ll follow up soon to ask you what you’d like your next step in the movement to be.
— End Child Poverty in California (@EndChildPovCA) November 12, 2019
We look forward to working with the Dolores Huerta Foundation to mobilize communities across the state so that all our children have a brighter future and all our families can thrive!
California has 450,000 children living in deep poverty. We’re also the only state with a plan to END it. Californians across the state know that all our children can thrive. Already, almost $5 billion has been put toward the End Child Poverty Plan in the 2019-2020 state budget. Investments to end child poverty will pay for themselves over time as parents and children become healthier in body, mind, and spirit, and are able to break free from poverty.
There’s more work to do. In California, we have the research, the plan, and the momentum to end child poverty. Now we need the political and moral courage to see it through.
Parent Voices leader Monique gets a hug from her proud son Makai after speaking at the End Child Poverty CA Bus Tour kickoff event in Chula Vista, May 2019.
Monique is a parent leader from Parent Voices San Diego, and a single parent raising her amazing son Makai. In 2019, she’s been in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Sacramento fighting for parents in poverty. When we listen to the powerful voices of parents, we know without a doubt that all our kids can thrive. In May, Monique shared her story in front of a crowd of about 200 people at Castle Park High School in Chula Vista. Watch Monique’s speech here.
***
Hello, my name is Monique Rosas and I am a parent advocate for Parent Voices, an organization advocating for working families to have affordable child care.
We speak for the voiceless!
I am a 26-year-old San Diego native and single mother to a 4-year-old son named Makai. [Note: Makai is now 5!] Since 1992, my family and I have battled with homelessness. From birth until I was 8-years-old we lived in hotels, shelters, and other people’s homes — experiencing the trauma of being unstable and insecure. [M]y parents suffered from depression due to living in poverty, this led them to substance abuse, but they still did the best they could to support our family.
Growing up as a child into an adult I inherited my parents’
bad habits. Becoming a single parent affected by mental health and I started to
abuse substances to relieve the pain of trying to provide for my son by myself.
Tired of the intergenerational cycle of poverty, I made a decision to change it
and applied for CalWORKs. My activity last year was a women’s recovery program
where I became one year sober on January 14th, 2019. Then I graduated from a
culinary apprenticeship program through CalWORKs.
I was excited to finally become successful. My next step was
to move out. My case manager referred me to transitional housing, which was
actually a tent. Now my worst nightmare of my son experiencing deep childhood
poverty became true. Since I receive $577 dollars a month for Makai and I, we
cannot afford housing. I pay all my bills by the 15th of the month and end up
with less than $100 to decide if I pay for gas or toilet paper. I still don’t
have enough to save and move out. Even with all my success, I still feel like
I’m drowning and gasping for air. There’s no room for growth.
So I believe in this campaign to end childhood deep poverty because it’s going to be the beginning to breaking the cycle – so we may stop drowning to be able to breathe again. Thank you.
California has 450,000 children living in deep poverty. We’re also the only state with a plan to END it. Californians across the state know that all our children can thrive. Already, almost $5 billion has been put toward the End Child Poverty Plan in the 2019-2020 state budget. Investments to end child poverty will pay for themselves over time as parents and children become healthier in body, mind, and spirit, and are able to break free from poverty.
There’s more work to do. We have the research, the plan, and
the momentum to end child poverty. Now we need the political and moral courage
to see it through.
