[news] Child Care Month - Nothing to Celebrate

[resist admin]

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: FW:  Child Care Month - Nothing to Celebrate
From: "Bob Wilson" <BWilson at heu.org>
Date: Tue, April 22, 2003 5:07 pm


Subject: Child Care Month - Nothing to Celebrate


Another devastating affect of the Liberal's actions.......
Yours
June

COALITION OF CHILD CARE ADVOCATES OF BC
Child Care Month - Nothing to Celebrate!

May 2003



For the past 20 years, we have taken time in May to honour and celebrate
child  care. The tradition began in the early 1980's when the BC Daycare
Action  Coalition asked the City of Vancouver to proclaim Daycare Week.
Our first  slogan - Good daycare is good for kids - is as relevant today
as it was then.



Over time, May has become Child Care Month in BC. Mayors pass
proclamations,  governments produce posters, child care organizations
raise the profile of  child care in their communities, advocates push
the public policy agenda and  all of us take time to celebrate the
tireless and remarkable efforts of the  caregivers across BC who are
there for children, families and communities day  in and day out.



But - this year is different. This year, we face an unprecedented
erosion of  the progress we achieved over the last two decades. Here are
the facts:



- Over a 3 year period, the province will cut over $50 million from
child care



- Over 10,000 families have lost all or part of their child care subsidy




- Enrolment of children from low and moderate income families in
licensed  programs is down



- More children are now in unlicensed settings or on their own before
and after  school



- Wages for many child care providers are being rolled back to 1998
levels



- Programs have closed and more will close in the near future.



This year - there is NOTHING to celebrate! So, instead of parties,
parades and  picnics, we are encouraging you to take action that mourns
the losses,  highlights the critical nature of the situation and holds
our elected leaders  to account for their broken promises. Here are some
ideas:



- Order copies of the "Nothing to Celebrate" Bumper Sticker at
info at cccabc.bc.ca and post them all over the community (Due to limited
numbers  of stickers, packages of 25 stickers will be mailed on a first
come, first  serve basis)



- Hold a mock funeral or a silent vigil outside the local MLA's office



- Wear gray arm bands



- Ask a local reporter to cover the 'real child care stories' in your
community



- And once again - write, call, or email the Premier, Lynn Stephens and
your  MLA to tell them that because of their actions - there is nothing
to celebrate.



For information on campaigns as they develop, stay tuned to
http://www.cccabc.bc.ca



The following organizations join the Coalition of Child Care Advocates
in  endorsing this message: BC Association of Child Care Services, Early
Childhood  Educators of BC, School Age Child Care Association of BC and
Westcoast Child  Care Resource Centre.




_______________________________________________

Cccabc-l mailing list: Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC

http://list.web.net/lists/listinfo/cccabc-l