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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Healthy families are vital to the success of our
3children and, ultimately, our nation; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Nationally, African American children are almost
5twice as likely as white children to have their well-being
6investigated by child protective services; and
 
7    WHEREAS, African American women and their children have
8long been overrepresented in the child welfare system, and
9while African American children represent 15 percent of the
10nation's children, they account for 45 percent of the foster
11care population and are four times as likely as white children
12to be in foster care; and
 
13    WHEREAS, As a percentage of the general population, African
14American children are five times more likely than Caucasian
15children to be in out-of-home care and are nearly twice as
16likely to enter care for "parent reasons", and African American
17families are more likely to be reported for neglect; and
 
18    WHEREAS, In Minnesota alone, African American children are
1916.3 times as likely as Caucasian children to be placed out of
20home during a child protection assessment; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, We believe that it is best to protect the best
2interests of African American children and to promote the
3stability and security of African American families to prevent
4arbitrary and unnecessary removal of African American children
5from their families; and
 
6    WHEREAS, The creation of an African American Child Welfare
7Advisory Council in our State would work to address disparities
8at major decision points, while providing oversight and
9accountability to the child protection workforce; and
 
10    WHEREAS, It is necessary to protect children and strengthen
11families, reduce the overall cost of child welfare services and
12out of home placement, reduce law enforcement and judicial
13system costs for intervention, improve the mental health and
14social function of African American children, and improve the
15child protection department's efficacy; therefore, be it
 
16    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
17HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, That
18we encourage State policymakers to increase their awareness of
19the statistics surrounding the treatment of African American
20children and families in our existing institutions, to enact
21legislation to protect African American children and allow them
22to stay in safe home environments, and to work to reduce
23unnecessary government intervention into their homes and

 

 

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1disruptions of their family unit; and be it further
 
2    RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to
3the President of the United States, the Vice President of the
4United States, members of the United States House of
5Representatives and the United States Senate, and other federal
6and state government officials and agencies as appropriate.