Child Rights

Every child should have quality healthcare, a good education, and a safe home and community. But the United States lags behind other nations in protecting these basic rights. America has one of the highest infant mortality rates among developed nations, and the United States leads the world in violence against children and child poverty. Child farmworkers in the U.S. also continue to work in dangerous conditions at very young ages, and the United States is also one of the only nations that has failed to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. First Focus is working to educate policymakers about the need for reforms that protect the basic rights of every child in America.
Resources
Testimony: House Judiciary Committee Hearing on “Free Speech: The Biden Administration’s Chilling of Parents’ Fundamental Rights”
Bruce Lesley | March 22, 2023 |
Today, First Focus on Children submitted the following statement for the record to members of the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government. Excerpt …
Title 42 “is not an immigration policy,” advocate says
Michele Kayal | December 21, 2022 |
Courts, Congress and Biden Administration must uphold U.S. tradition of welcome In response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s continuation of the pandemic border restrictions known as …
Fighting Education Inequity: Young People are Critical to Transforming Education
| September 2, 2022 |
The following is a Guest Post by:Anny Lin (Youth & Student Fellow at Global Campaign for Education-US. alin@gce-us.org), Emily Davis (Research Associate for the …
Fact Sheet: The “Best Interests of the Child” Standard
Miriam Abaya | August 2, 2022 |
What is the “Best Interests of the Child” standard? The “best interests of the child” is a principle to ensure government policies safeguard the …
Issue Brief: The Case for a Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) on Child Well-being
Miriam Abaya | August 2, 2022 |
THE CHALLENGE The American people expect government policy to advance the best interests of children. Yet, the data shows that U.S. policy lacks the high-level …
Statement: “Truth-telling” is first step to justice for children in treatment centers
Michele Kayal | July 27, 2022 |
In response to the investigation of children’s treatment centers launched by Sens. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), First Focus on Children President …
2 troubling SCOTUS decisions for schools and students
Conor Sasner | July 15, 2022 |
Two recent Supreme Court rulings – Kennedy v. Bremerton and Carson v. Makin – will accelerate the decay of the separation of Church and …
How Hidden Foster Care Harms Children and Parents of Color
Aubrey Edwards-Luce | July 7, 2022 |
This article originally appeared in The Imprint. I felt an icy cold panic in the core of my being when my ahijada’s (goddaughter’s) mother …
Joint Letter: DHS, Implement the Homeland Security for Children Act
| June 21, 2022 |
First Focus on Children sent this letter signed by 30 organizations to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to thank him for …
Julie Beckett’s Legacy Lives On
Carrie Fitzgerald (Former Staff), First Focus Campaign for Children | June 10, 2022 |
The loss of Julie Beckett, who passed away on May 13th in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was felt across the country. Individuals, families, current and …