[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 76 (Thursday, June 5, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1124]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




STATEMENT BY KRISTINA SWEET, HARWOOD UNION HIGH SCHOOL, REGARDING CHILD 
                                POVERTY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. BERNARD SANDERS

                               of vermont

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 5, 1997

  Mr. SANDERS. Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of my colleagues I would 
like to have printed in the Record this statement by a high school 
student from Harwood Union School in Vermont, who was speaking at my 
recent town meeting on issues facing young people.

       Ms. Sweet. The instances of young children, children under 
     age of 6 living in poverty in the United States has risen 
     dramatically over the last two decades. Child poverty is a 
     problem that encompasses urban, suburban, and rural areas and 
     affects children of all ethnic backgrounds.
       Between the years of 1975, 2 years after the lowest 
     recorded child poverty level, 11.1 percent, the rate 
     increased 39 percent, so that by 1994, one in four young 
     children lived in poverty in the United States. Forty-five 
     percent of all children under the age of 6 lived in poor or 
     nearly poor families.
       Because poverty has proved to be more detrimental to young 
     children than to any other age group, because poverty often 
     means hunger, poor health care, poor education, and even 
     because of the economic problems of a future ill-prepared 
     work force the issue of child poverty is one that 
     necessitates immediate action.
       Why the great rise in child poverty? Over the past two 
     decades and especially since the beginning of the 1980's 
     there has occurred an increasing gap between the rich and 
     poor in this country. The average workers wages have declined 
     since 1970 while the wealthiest fifth of the population has 
     seen their incomes increased. This small distribution of 
     wealth significantly affects the poverty of children when 62 
     percent of all poor children live with at least one working 
     relative.
       Even more important than reforming the welfare system will 
     be the reform of an economy that has created the largest gap 
     between the rich and the poor in any industrialized nation. 
     In the past 2 years because of the increased funding of the 
     welfare system and other programs, poverty rates have made a 
     moderate decline. With the new welfare reform bill passed in 
     1996, loss of funding may cause another increase in child 
     poverty. The work requirement of the new welfare bill will 
     not be affected until backed up with adequate child care and 
     health care programs and a reform of the economy.
       Many welfare recipients also because they are unable to 
     find work for a living wage and unable to care for their 
     children while at work, single parents especially need to be 
     provided with access to affordable and adequate child care 
     and health services if they are to work outside of the home.
       Children are the future leaders, the future work force, the 
     future citizens of the United States of which one in four 
     even today is living in poverty or near poverty or without 
     many of the opportunities needed to live successfully as 
     citizens of the United States.
       Congressman Sanders, I thank you for your time and urge you 
     to consider the children of the Nation as much as possible in 
     the future.
       Poverty gives young children, especially young mothers, 
     pregnant mothers, children can end up with low-birth weight 
     and are more--after they are born--are more susceptible to 
     disease and malnutrition and other health problems and are 
     also more unable to get a good education as children of 
     welfare.
       It generally impacts the future of a child who grows up 
     poor who has considerably less access to a good education, is 
     less motivated in school and doesn't really see a way out of 
     poverty.
       Considering that welfare only takes up 2 percent of the 
     Federal budget I think that more funding could be put into 
     helping people who have children who are unable to make a 
     decent wage, to help the children get a better education and 
     get decent health care.
       Most people that are receiving welfare are unable to make a 
     decent wage and even if they are unable to pay for education 
     that would provide them with a better job.
       The percentage that I found was that only 2 percent of the 
     population is receiving Federal aid and is entirely 
     unemployed, so 62 percent of all families with four children 
     are working, have at least one relative that is working, so I 
     think that we need to provide people with better jobs, with 
     better pay.
       With the new computer technology there are a lot of jobs 
     predicted but I do not think most people who are poor are 
     properly educated to go in those sorts of fields.

     

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