America's Children Need You

The well-being of children shouldn’t be a political issue. Their success needs to be the common commitment of our national life.

- Alma and Colin Powell

When we were raised, there were plenty of adults—family members as well as neighbors—who took a hand in setting standards for children. Their consistent message— “Mind your manners” and “Mind who you are”—was a call for young people to treat themselves and others with dignity. Families and children flourish with these connections, whether they’re personal or based in institutions such as quality day care and schools, sports teams, religious youth groups, extracurricular activities, libraries, and youth development organizations.

But over the years, we have seen the bonds that support young people buckle under the pressures of modern life. In too many places, children are caught in a sticky web of troubles that would be difficult for any of us to escape. Some children do heroically transcend these problems through hard work, character, and idealism. But it should not require heroism to be a child.

Our children deserve better. They deserve a life that rewards their dreams, a life of opportunity—after all, equal opportunity is the defining promise of our country. It is a commitment that should unite right and left, rural and urban, rich and poor.

The America to which we aspire rises to challenges and sacrifices for the good of the next generation. If you are a parent worried about the intellectual and moral formation of your children, this is your cause. If you are a teacher struggling against influences outside the classroom that leave young people unprepared for learning, this is your cause. If you are an employer who has trouble finding skilled workers in an increasingly skills-based economy, this is your cause. This is our cause.