https://www.fcd-us.org/courage-today-will-lead-us-to-a-better-tomorrow/
The Foundation for Child Development stands firmly with the children and families who have been marginalized by centuries of colonialism and racism, virulent xenophobia, and persistent economic inequality.
In the last blog post of our Social Justice for Young Children Conversation Series, Regis Pecos encouraged us to view our lives within a multigenerational perspective. His Pueblo tradition calls on community members to see themselves within a seven-generation context: we are the fourth generation, shaped by our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents, and in turn what we do in our lifetimes affects our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Will the next generations thank us or condemn us?
At the Foundation for Child Development, our Staff and Board are the children and grandchildren of immigrants and refugees from China, Haiti, India, Italy, Mexico, the Philippines, and Taiwan who sought economic opportunity and escape from authoritarian regimes by migrating to the United States. We are the descendants of enslaved people, brought forcefully to this country and who understood what it means to resist oppression and reach for liberation.
We will channel our forebears’ wisdom, aspirations, and resilience into our work to support today’s children, so that they have the opportunity to reach their full potential. No doubt that goal feels far off when we are experiencing blitzkrieg attacks on immigrant families, nonprofits, data and research infrastructure, the federal civil service, and diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. The speed and the breadth of the attacks are designed to create feelings of overwhelm, and we resist by holding onto our vision of the world we are working toward. We know from our forebears that progress does not come without struggle. It takes courage, solidarity, and commitment to resist oppressive forces and build a better society for future generations.
In the coming year, the Foundation will continue to support social justice for young children — which necessarily includes their families and communities. We have increased our funding for groups that build the collective power of parents to influence state and federal policy so that it benefits the full diversity of our nation’s children. With one in four of those children living in immigrant families, we will also work in solidarity with movement leaders, researchers, and funder colleagues to protect children of immigrants and their families.
We also know that grantees are facing harrowing challenges in the face of unprecedented cuts to federal funding and staffing as well as politicized attacks on nonprofits and universities. Rest assured that we understand that many of you will need to step back from your proposed plans in this new context. Nonprofits may need to repurpose funds in ways that meet your organization’s mission. Researchers may no longer be able to conduct their studies as planned. We understand that you may need to regroup with your teams and partners and take some time to determine your next steps. We will be flexible in supporting your needs.
Looking ahead, we will seek to balance the urgency of immediate needs with longer-term work to build the just society that children deserve. We know this is no easy task. A four-year presidency can have a dramatic impact on children’s early social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development. Thus we must mitigate the risks to children today while looking longer term to what we want to leave behind for the generations that will follow us.