[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 31 (Tuesday, March 15, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H1501-H1502]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               EVEN START

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Cunningham) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Mr. Speaker, I am a strong supporter of our President 
and I feel that he has done a good job in this Nation. Actually the 
world owes him and the First Lady a lot of support and our gratitude.
  Sometimes the bean counters in the White House though take a look at 
a program and do not look at its effectiveness and they eliminate it. 
Many times they have to look at a program and eliminate it if it is 
duplicative or wasteful or ineffective.
  But during the last budget process there was a program on the list 
that was not only effective but enhanced Leave No Child Behind and 
education, and the title of that was Even Start.
  Ask any teacher, administrator or parent that if a parent is involved 
in the program called Even Start and my friend, the gentleman from 
Wisconsin (Mr. Obey) and I have a friend named Peter Yarrow involved in 
that. I know I can count on my colleague to support this because we did 
last year.
  This program brings parents and it brings students together to work 
together. Any time you can involve parents in education the outcome is 
much, much better.
  Chairman Bill Goodling, the former Member who was then the chairman 
of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, ramroded Even Start. 
He kept it alive when it was almost fatal.
  This House last Congress recognized the significance of the 
successful program and came together, both Republicans and Democrats, 
and reinstated the Even Start program. The gains in low income 
children, their parents are well-documented in improving literacy 
levels and assisting parents in completing their GEDs. Quite often low 
income parents in our districts and the gentleman from California's 
(Mr. Filner) and the gentleman from Wisconsin's (Mr. Obey) do not even 
speak English, and these parents actually come together with their 
children and work these programs, and we want to have it reinstated. I 
have faith that we are.
  The fact that the chairman of the Committee on Education and the 
Workforce, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner) is supportive, and the 
gentleman from California (Mr. McKeon), chairman of the subcommittee, 
are supportive, and we have commitment I believe in the Senate to do 
the same thing.

                              {time}  1915

  My wife asked me to go listen to a man one year who is a good friend 
of the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Obey) as well. She said, I want 
you to go here Peter Yarrow. I said, who is Peter Yarrow? She said, 
Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter Yarrow. I said, that anti-war, left-wing 
guy, I am not going to go listen to him, and she said, Well, honey, I 
support you and your events, go to this thing with me. I did, and I 
think the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Obey) will admit and agree that 
he is one of the most caring people that we have ever met, especially 
when it comes to children and children's programs.
  Peter Yarrow has a song called ``Don't Laugh At Me,'' and he is 
involved also in the Even Start program, and I would submit the rest of 
this for the Record, but Peter's issue is that things like Columbine, 
if we would have encouraged these children to get together and not 
laugh at each other, then maybe we would not have had a Columbine.
  I would like to read just a few stanzas of the song that he sings. He 
was so effective, I invited this guy that I do not agree with in many 
politics, but we brought him before the Republican Conference, and he 
wowed the people and got support for the Even Start program.

       I'm a little boy with glasses, the one they call a geek. A 
     little girl who never smiles, 'cause I have braces on my 
     teeth. And I know how it feels to cry myself to sleep.
       I'm that kid on every playground who's always chosen last. 
     A single teenage mother, tryin' to overcome my past. You 
     don't have to be my friend, but is it too much to ask.

[[Page H1502]]

       Don't laugh at me. Don't call me names. Don't get your 
     pleasure from my pain. In God's eyes, we're all the same. 
     Someday we'll all have perfect wings. Don't laugh at me.
       . . . I'm fat, I'm thin, I'm short, I'm tall, I'm deaf, I'm 
     blind, in a way, we are all. I'm black, I'm white, and I am 
     brown. I'm Jewish, I'm Christian, and I am Muslim. I was born 
     in Sarajevo. I was born in Kosovo. I was born in Northern 
     Ireland. I was born in Africa. I'm of the Hutu tribe. I'm of 
     the Tutsi tribe . . . I'm American Indian. I was born in 
     Iraq, in Afghanistan, in Canada, in Mexico. I was born in 
     Vietnam, in Sudan. I was born in the United States of 
     America.
       I'm very, very young. I'm quite aged. I'm Israeli. I'm 
     Palestinian. I'm quite wealthy, and I am very, very poor.
       My country 'tis of thee. Oh, sweet land of liberty. It is 
     of thee that I sing.''

  There are many stanzas to this song and I challenge anyone in this 
room or on either side of the aisle to listen to Peter Yarrow and what 
he stands for and not have tears in his eyes.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask for the support of Even Start, and we will put it 
back into the budget regardless of the President's bean counters.
  You are very familiar with Peter Yarrow and his work. I'll summarize 
some Even Start talking points below.
  Even Start serves children 0 through 7 years old and their families. 
The services provided include early childhood education, adult basic 
education, parenting education and interactive literacy instruction 
(parents and children reading together).
       The San Diego and Poway programs are very successful and 
     have documented significant gains in children's literacy 
     levels as well as an impressive record in assisting parents 
     in completing their GED. The focus is on assisting parents to 
     be their child's first and best teacher. In addition, in San 
     Diego we have been very successful in helping parents 
     transition from Spanish to English thereby enabling them to 
     be involved with their children's education as well as making 
     them more viable in the local economy/job market.
  Peter Yarrow has been a great friend to Even Start nationwide--his 
Don't Laugh at Me program which is a character education program in 
schools has been incorporated in many Even Start programs nationwide.
  Goals of Even Start:
  To extend learning, enrich language development and support high 
levels of success for children birth to age seven and their families.
  To break the cycle of limited literacy, under-employment and high 
mobility of participating families by building literacy skills in both 
parents and children.
  To provide `simultaneous' services for families, where parents and 
their children learn together. This builds support for parents to 
succeed with their educational and employment goals, and develop habits 
of life-long learning for their children.
  To support families committed to education and to economic 
independence.

                           Don't Laugh at Me

(Written by Steve Seskin and Allen Shamblin, performed by Peter Yarrow)

     I'm a little boy with glasses
     The one they call a geek
     A little girl who never smiles
     `Cause I have braces on my teeth
     And I know how it feels to cry
     myself to sleep

     I'm that kid on every playground
     Who's always chosen last
     A single teenage mother
     Tryin' to overcome my past
     You don't have to be my friend
     But is it too much to ask

     Don't laugh at me
     Don't call me names
     Don't get your pleasure from my pain
     In God's eyes we're all the same
     Someday we'll all have perfect wings
     Don't laugh at me

     I'm the beggar on the corner
     You've passed me on the street
     And I wouldn't be out here beggin'
     If I had enough to eat
     And don't think I don't notice
     That our eyes never meet

     Don't laugh at me
     Don't call me names
     Don't get you pleasure from my pain
     In God's eyes we're all the same
     Someday we'll all have perfect wings
     Don't laugh at me

     I'm fat, I'm thin, I'm short, I'm tall
     I'm deaf, I'm blind, hey, aren't we all

     Don't laugh at me
     Don't call me names
     Don't get your pleasure from my pain
     In God's eyes we're all the same
     Someday we'll all have perfect wings
     Don't laugh at me

     I'm fat, I'm thin, I'm short, I'm tall
     I'm deaf, I'm blind, in a way, we are all.
     I'm black, I'm white, and I am brown
     I'm Jewish, I'm Christian, and I am Muslim
     I was born in Sarajevo, I was born in Kosovo,
     I was born in Northern Ireland, I was born in Africa
     I'm of the Hutu tribe, I'm of the Tutsi tribe
     I'm American Indian
     I was born in Iraq, in Afghanistan, in Canada, in Mexico,
     I was born in Vietnam, in Sudan, I was born in the United 
           States of America

     I'm very, very young, I'm quite aged
     I'm Israeli, I'm Palestinian,
     I'm quite wealthy, and I am very, very poor.

     My country `tis of thee
     Oh, sweet land of liberty
     It is of thee . . .
     that I sing.

                          ____________________