Becerra Praises Childcare as Indispensable

03/24/2021

Becerra Praises Childcare as Indispensable

We live in a world in which we need to share responsibility. It's easy to say ‘It's not my child, not my community, not my world, not my problem.’ Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider those people my heroes.
Fred Rogers

"Child care and early learning were in the spotlight during Health and Human Services nominee Xavier Becerra’s recent Senate confirmation hearings," writes Cody Uhing in an article on the First Five Years Fund website.

Uhing explains, "In response to Senator Tina Smith’s (D-MN) question about his child care priorities as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Becerra spoke about the need to support the child care industry amid the pandemic. ‘We need to stabilize this field because child care providers have been some of the hardest hit in America because of COVID… America realizes how important our child care workers are to our livelihood, to our economy.

Becerra went on to praise the work of child care providers and educators, saying, ‘I think the COVID pandemic has made clear to so many Americans how indispensable child care workers are and how they’re worth their weight in gold. I hope that what we see as a result of COVID is a true recognition of the value of child care workers, of our teachers and reward them properly so that we can make sure that we have the professionals we need taking care of the future leaders, perhaps a future President, future Senator."

Lilian Katz, writing in the book Developing People (part of the Art of Leadership series), espouses similar sentiments:

"We must come to see that the welfare of our children and grandchildren is intimately linked to the welfare of all other people’s children. After all, when one of our children needs life-changing surgery, someone else’s child will perform it. If one of our children is threatened or harmed by violence, someone else’s child will be responsible for the violent act. The good life for our own children can only be secured if a good life is also secured for all other people’s children. Where are other people’s children right now? Are they having wholesome, caring, and appropriate experiences? The person who will be our president 60 years from now may be in someone’s three-year-old class today. I hope she’s having a good experience! To be concerned about other people’s children is not just a practical matter — it is a moral and ethical one."

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