A few words from Linda
As each of us processes the anticipated results of the federal election in our daily lives, we may be experiencing a range of emotions. All of us at the R&R Network hope you are taking good care of yourself and leaning on your support system, and at the same time resisting the temptation to disengage from what can continue to be tough moments of heated tension on social policies and funding priorities.
We remind ourselves that our work is to support all families, including many of the most marginalized members of our communities. This responsibility and caring for our most vulnerable has not, and will not change. What might change or get added is how we serve our families — perhaps with a closer eye towards keeping children and families feeling safe, adding support when fear abounds; or stepping in to prevent actions or narratives that contribute to divisiveness and “othering” of people, or perhaps conscious efforts to heal and unite communities on what we have in common and to prevent people from turning on each other.
Nonjudgmental parent support has been a cornerstone of what the child care resource and referral agencies do. We are not here to judge or police people, rather, we start where an individual is at and work to open up their options, and provide information and resources so they can do the best parenting or caring/educating of children that they can for the child in front of them.
Our shared values have been to respect the families we serve and to support them to maintain their dignity and hope for their future. We will continue to do this work with fierce determination so that working families and child care providers continue to thrive in partnership with what we offer.
Challenging times are ahead, with the threats of programs potentially being eliminated or severely cut (ex. Head Start, or unraveling the Affordable Care Act, etc.). There are more than 51,000 California children currently enrolled in the Head Start program, and another 27,000 children in Early Head Start, which serves children up to age 3. That is a significant impact on California’s children, families and our state workforce (now and in the future). There are also a number of mixed-documented families with young children who may fear a parent being deported. We need to prepare for what our children and families may face on the ground as we serve them and advocate their needs.
Where do we need to put our energy and focus? Where do we need to speak up to inform and educate? What data do we need to lift up the needs in our communities and dispel myths or untruths? We hope to be a uniting force, to listen in to your ground-level experience, and to help guide and equip you so we can continue to do what we do best, and work as a powerful force for good.
Our commitment to a shared vision will bring us strength and a daily opportunity to work in unison for a brighter future for our children and families. We will carry on, together.