JUS 420 Blog #5

Chaudry argues that by we are asking the less fortunate to work harder, we are ignoring our public responsibility to the children born into these poor, disadvantaged families and communities because when we send these single, poor mothers off to work their kids need to go somewhere, and that somewhere is generally not good. These mothers already lack money, and forcing them to put their children into child care facilities forces them to spend more money they do not have. Some may argue that they are making more money now, and therefore should be able to afford it, but this is simply not true. Yes they make more money, but this also makes them qualify for less help from the government and less child care subsidies. So these mothers look for the cheapest care they can find, and most of the cheap places are lower quality. Child care is supposed to stimulate children to develop their full potential during their critical period for development of their bodies and minds but the cheap child care does not provide this. In his first chapter, Chaudry looks at the story of Annette and Aaron who experienced a many problems with the reform. She had a hard time holding down a job because she could not find reliable child care. When she finally found a child care provider, they said they did not want to watch him because he was troublesome shortly after they started watching him. Next, he went to his grandmother who did not treat him well, she yelled and hit him, and she allowed him to play outside in the projects often. The next place allowed him to watch TV all day and Aaron begged her not to take him there. All of these situations that she was forced to put her son in were not conducive to his psychological well-being and development. Annette finally found a stable, good environment for her son, but she worried that she did not know what was going on there because she had no time to talk with the provider. This is a good example of how many women are having a hard time striking a balance between making money and parenting, and many times they have to give up on the parenting in order to supply their children with the material things they need. Again, another thing that affects the young children of poor families negatively. The reform has neglected the needs of already disadvantaged children by forcing their mothers to leave them in bad child care facilities that are unconcerned with their development.

In the video, “Living with a hole in your pocket,” they address the fact that many times parents will have to work nearly 80 hours per week in order to make ends meet. This gives the children of these families nearly no time with their parents which is a necessary part of their development. The video also touched on the idea that these people have a hard time working their way out of poverty, and they call it “the vicious cycle.” When these children lack parental supervision throughout their lives and proper child care, it makes them more likely to lead a life similar to that of their parents because they were not properly equipped with the tools to get out. The video “Katherine Newman on America’s working poor” addresses this issue in more detail. She says, “The children fall through the cracks.” She says this because many children are left alone after school, making them more likely to get in trouble and repeat the poverty cycle. The problem also escalates because the key to upward mobility is education which is not easily available to these children.