Invest in Communities
Every child and family, from Racine to Rhinelander, deserves a solid foundation in life. But for decades, the wealthy few have rigged the rules and diverted sorely necessary investment from our neighborhoods to their pocketbooks. This, fueled by fear-based racial biases, has left communities of color deeply isolated from opportunity. But structural racism hurts everyone, including white families. We need to address the root causes of these inequities and remove the barriers, created by the wealthy few, that hold our families and neighbors back from living a peaceful, healthy, and happy life.
Affordable, Quality Childcare for Everyone
A lack of affordable childcare is keeping many parents at home to care for their children, contributing to a worker shortage in our state. It’s also holding women back professionally–especially women of color. And, the number of family childcare centers has decreased dramatically over decades, disproportionately impacting families of color.
To help address this, the Parent/Caregiver Equity Advisory Cabinet (PCEAC) was created. The Cabinet, supported by Kids Forward, advises state leaders to ensure that the state’s early childhood programs, policies, and services reflect the needs of families with children ages 0-8 and their caregivers. Contact Daithi Wolfe to learn more or get involved.
I have had to sacrifice allowing my children to attend a place that I was not fully comfortable because of the lower cost as well as the availability. There are not many options here and many have waiting lists.
Opportunity Youth Initiative
Wisconsin is home to more than 775,000 young people ages 15-24, and they’re putting down roots all over our state. But, when youth grow up in communities with higher levels of poverty or limited resources, they’re more likely to experience a lack of secure employment; poor physical and mental health outcomes; disabilities; homelessness; or involvement in the child welfare, foster care, or youth justice systems. These young people are often left out of the policy discussions that most impact their lives if they’re disconnected from traditional school or work pipelines.
To address this, youth in the Fox Valley launched the Opportunity Youth Initiative (OYI). Now housed at Kids Forward, OYI advocates for positive, equitable outcomes for young people throughout Wisconsin, providing a unique, intentional approach to empowering youth by centering their voices, experiences, and concerns. We provide capacity building opportunities for youth-based and -serving organizations in Wisconsin through listening sessions, advocacy coaching, and action.
Are you youth or a youth advocate interested in getting involved? Contact our team.
Faith Roska
Advocacy Coach
Kala Lones
Advocacy Coach
Reduce Reliance on Youth Incarceration & Invest in Community-based Alternatives
Wisconsin has a strong need to fund important, relational, evidence-based programs such as Credible Messenger programs and school-based mental health services. These programs offer a community-based, intensive support network to help prevent youth from entering the justice system and provide interventions for youth involved in the justice system. They are a much safer and cost-effective way to empower neighborhoods, maintain public safety, reduce recidivism, and stop the overreliance on law enforcement and detention. We advocate for these alternatives at the state and local level. Contact Carte’cia Weaver to share your experiences with community-based alternatives to incarceration.
Challenging Anti-immigrant Narratives
Immigrants are part of the fabric of Wisconsin—our ancestors, our neighbors, our co-workers, our friends. But, fear-based reactionary policies that force immigrants into the shadows haven’t worked, and they hurt all of us by encouraging exploitation by unscrupulous employers. We provide research and analysis on the valuable contributions of Wisconsin’s immigrants.
To learn more or share your story, please contact Liliana Barrera or Amanda Martinez.
Recent Publications
2022 Kids Count Data Book: Wisconsin’s Children of Color More Likely to Face Mental Health Issues
Anxiety and depression are rising among Wisconsin’s youth, especially children of color. The 2022 KIDS COUNT® Data Book highlights 16 indicators of well-being for children and families, and also shows that mental health needs among our state’s youth continue to be...
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