[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 75 (Wednesday, May 7, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E849]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            SUPPORTING THE GOALS AND IDEALS OF MOTHER'S DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON-LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, May 5, 2008

  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker. I rise today in strong support 
of H. Res. 1113, ``Celebrating the Role of Mothers in the United 
States.'' I would like to thank my colleague, Congressman Jeff 
Fortenberry of Nebraska, for introducing this heartfelt legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, as a Mother myself, I am extremely proud to stand before 
you on a day recognizing mothers. Mothers are the strongest link in the 
family chain. She holds the family together, nurturing both child and 
husband.
  I want to thank my own mother and grandmother for their support over 
the years. I also want to thank all of the mothers who take care of not 
only their natural children but also the children in the community, the 
children in foster care, and children overseas.
  The annual number of Texas children in foster care has risen steadily 
in recent years. In November 2003, there were about 16,000 children in 
foster care and an additional 5,000 in other care, such as kinship 
care; 2,146 children were served in emergency shelters and homes; 671 
children were served in placements outside the foster care system, such 
as nursing homes, mental health/mental retardation facilities, 
hospitals and juvenile justice facilities.
  In a study by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, which 
oversees the Department of Family and Protective Services, they stated 
that Black children stay in foster care significantly longer, are less 
likely to be reunited with their families, and wait longer for adoption 
than white or Hispanic children.
  They are everybody's children, and nobody's children. They are the 
forgotten children in the Texas foster care system. Black, White, 
Hispanic, Asian--they all need the love of a mother, the nurturing of a 
family, and the support of their community. Some of them find homes 
with caring foster parents, or in treatment centers with experienced 
and caring providers. And some do not.
  Some foster children have been moved among 30, 40, or even more all-
too-temporary ``homes.'' Some have been sexually, physically, and 
emotionally abused while in the system; some have run away and joined 
the ranks of the missing. A few have even died at the hands of those 
entrusted with their care.
  The mission of the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, 
DPRS, now called the Department of Family and Protective Services, is 
to protect the unprotected--children, the elderly and people with 
disabilities--from abuse, neglect and exploitation. The system 
responsible for protecting our foster children sometimes is little 
better than the homes from which they were taken.
  Many of these children are not safe, and their futures are uncertain. 
They didn't ask to be put in foster care, and many endured great 
suffering before entering the system.
  These children need mothers too. They need families. At a time when 
we are celebrating all that mothers bring, all that grandmothers bring, 
and all that a real family brings to the upbringing of healthy and 
successful children; we must remember the children who do not have 
mothers and we must reach out.
  As we near Mother's Day, let me say thank you to all the mothers near 
and far, in Congress, in my district, and even working in my office. I 
celebrate you and your children celebrate you. Thank you for all that 
you do for your children and for the community.
  I urge my colleagues to remember not only their mothers but the other 
women they called mother in their schools, and in their communities. 
Let's celebrate mothers and H. Res. 1113.

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