https://www.fcd-us.org/democracy-is-child-policy-a-250th-anniversary-reflection/
Dear friends and colleagues,
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the United States, I have been pondering the connections between child policy and pro – democracy work. I have come to believe that we cannot advance social justice for children without fighting for our democracy.
The past year and a half have been, by turns, bewildering, maddening, and demoralizing, as relentless attacks have befallen communities of color and immigrants. As an academic by training, I often turn to research to make sense of moments such as this. Political science offers a clarifying, if unsettling, lesson: attacking vulnerable groups is a common tactic of authoritarian regimes. Authoritarians scapegoat certain groups, stoking an “us versus them” mentality, to bolster their political support and consolidate power.
With 1 in 2 children being children of color and 1 in 4 being children of immigrants, authoritarianism falls hard on those our work is meant to serve. I hope this 250th anniversary will serve as a democratic call to action for all those who champion children’s wellbeing.
Connecting Child Policy and Pro-Democracy Work
Throughout our 126-year history, the Foundation for Child Development has championed children at the margins of society — advocating education access for children with disabilities at the beginning of the 20th Century, providing polio vaccines and other health services for low-income children in the ensuing decades, and supporting a growing population of immigrant children at the turn of the Century. As our former Board Chair Velma McBride Murry put it plainly: “FCD has always been willing to take unpopular positions.” We have been guided by our values, not the orthodoxies of the times.
Our ability to fulfill our purpose of improving children’s lives rests on democratic processes. Our country has never fully lived up to its lofty ideals, but in recent times, we could expect the federal government to more or less follow the Constitution. We could expect the Administration to distribute Congressionally appropriated funds for child care, education, healthcare, and research. We could expect Congress to provide oversight of the Executive branch when laws were not followed. And we could expect federal agencies to abide by judicial rulings when they lost in court. The Supreme Court’s recent affirmation of birthright citizenship is a reminder that our constitutional foundations can still hold, even under strain — and a reminder of how much is at stake when they don’t.
When the checks and balances dictated by the Constitution are ignored, the work of advancing child policy becomes inseparable from the fight for democracy. At the Foundation for Child Development, this means strengthening our support for social movements that build collective power to demand government accountability at a time when too many elected officials are failing their constituents.
We are proud to expand our support for parent organizing groups such as Parent Voices California, as it extends its grassroots work beyond child care organizing to protect immigrant families against unlawful ICE actions. We stand with the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition in educating parents, students, educators, faith leaders, and business owners about threats to public schools and uniting them to defend education for all. We are inspired by researchers partnering with the Protecting Immigrant Families coalition and Children Thrive Action Network to leverage research and data in supporting children and their families. And we celebrate the ACLU litigators defending congressionally authorized early care and education programs in the courts — and winning.
The contestation between democratic and authoritarian forces calls us to protect nonprofit groups and academics so they can continue their work free from political interference or intimidation. Political scientist Steven Levitsky and his colleagues alert us to the dangers they face:
“In democracies, citizens are not punished for peacefully opposing those in power. They need not worry about publishing critical opinions, supporting opposition candidates, or engaging in peaceful protest because they know they will not suffer retribution from the government. In fact, the idea of legitimate opposition — that all citizens have a right to criticize, organize opposition to, and seek to remove the government through elections — is a foundational principle of democracy.
Under authoritarianism, by contrast, opposition comes with a price. Citizens and organizations that run afoul of the government become targets of a range of punitive measures: Politicians may be investigated and prosecuted on baseless or petty charges, media outlets may be hit with frivolous defamation suits or adverse regulatory rulings, businesses may face tax audits or be denied critical contracts or licenses, universities and other civic institutions may lose essential funding or tax-exempt status, and journalists, activists and other critics may be harassed, threatened or physically attacked by government supporters.”
Part of our role as a funder is ensuring that the organizations working courageously to protect children are not silenced, penalized, or driven from the field simply for doing their jobs.
Learning from History
Last month, our board and staff took a pilgrimage to Montgomery, Alabama, to seek historical inspiration and lessons for our contemporary work. Walking through four centuries of anti-Black racism at the Legacy Museum, and standing beneath the names of thousands of lynching victims at the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, we were struck by the parallels between the racial terror faced by Black families historically and the xenophobia experienced by immigrant families today: the violent separation of families, the dehumanization used to justify people’s subjugation, the exploitation of labor while denying human dignity, the suppression of communities through law enforcement and mass incarceration. These are not echoes of the past. They are today’s realities.
But Montgomery also gave us something else: a reminder of what it looks like when people fight back, and win. At the Rosa Parks Museum, we were reminded that behind one iconic act of courage stood a vast community of organizers, lawyers, faith leaders, and everyday people who refused to accept injustice. The Montgomery Bus Boycott succeeded not because of one person, but because of thousands of Black residents who walked for more than 380 days; volunteers who organized carpools; attorneys who took the fight to the Supreme Court; women like Claudette Colvin, who had refused her seat before Rosa Parks did; and leaders like E.D. Nixon and JoAnn Robinson, who had been laying the groundwork long before the world was watching.
This is what a social movement looks like. Not a singular hero nor an iconic leader, but a community that is strategically organized around a shared commitment to dignity and justice — a more authentic democracy for everyone.
We also had the profound privilege of meeting Dr. Valda Montgomery, who was just thirteen years old when her family opened their home to the Freedom Riders after they were beaten by a white mob for daring to challenge segregation in interstate bus travel. Her parents, Richard and Vera, gave those courageous riders food, shelter, and a loving embrace while they healed and planned the next leg of their protest journey. When I asked Dr. Montgomery whether she had been afraid, she didn’t hesitate: “No,” she said, “because fear and faith cannot coexist in the same space.” We are sitting with those words as we consider what it will take for our generation to match the bravery and sacrifice of our elders.
We approach this 250th anniversary carrying what Montgomery taught us, and the knowledge that our child policy work is inextricably tied to the protection and advancement of our democracy. Our generation faces profound choices, just as the generations before us did in fighting for a more inclusive and just democracy.
At the Foundation for Child Development, we are committed to picking up the mantle. We are choosing courage over fear, empathy over apathy, hope over despair, and action over helplessness.
Sincerely,
Vivian Tseng
President & CEO
Foundation for Child Development