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 Let's Talk
Denise Rolark Barnes
Columnist Page
Friday, November 19, 2004; Page 22
Do Kids Really Count in D.C.?
The D.C. Kids Count Collaborate released a very disturbing report on Tuesday regarding the well-being of children and families in the District of Columbia. The report, Every Kid Counts in the District of Columbia, 11th Annual Fact Book 2004, raises the question, “Do kids really count in D.C.?”
If kids count in D.C., then why do 37 percent of the 108,672 children live below the poverty line?
If kids count in D.C., then way did the number of child abuse cases increase by 18 percent?
If kids count in D.C., then why did the new applicants for emergency shelter increase by nearly 1000 since 2001, and why do these families include approximately 6,000 children?
If kids count in D.C., then why has the unemployment rate remained among the highest in the region while the number of jobs in the District have increased for the sixth straight year?
If kids count in D.C., then why do they have the lowest Stanford 9 test scores in the nation?
If kids count in D.C., then why has the rate of violent deaths to teens increased since 2002, and why has the teen murder rate increased, as well?
The report’s news is not all bad, thank goodness. There is some sunshine to be seen. For example, D.C. children are above the national average for receiving childhood immunizations. Mothers who received adequate prenatal care have increased by 10 percent since 1999, while the percent of births to teenage mothers has decreased. There has been a decrease in the number of low birthweight infants, and infant mortality has dropped to the second lowest level in the past 13 years.
The report includes a “Report Card” that provides a quick snapshot of the changes shown by this year’s indicators. Of the 37 indicators reported, 19 conditions for children have changed for the worse, 13 have changed for the better, and 5 have not changed at all.
For those who work and live in Wards 7 and 8, it is no surprise to learn that the majority of the District’s children are concentrated east of the Anacostia River. Of the District’s 108,403 children under the age of 18, 17 percent live in Ward 7 and 22 percent live in Ward 8. Still, since 2003, when the last Census estimates were made, the District lost 3,700 children from its population roles. This is consistent, however, with the steady decrease in the District’s overall population numbers.
At-Large Councilmember-elect Kwame Brown, who also serves on the board of directors of the D.C. Children’s Trust Fund, told reporters and child advocates at last Tuesday’s press conference that “We need a family friendly city.”
Yet, the trend is moving in the opposite direction. The District’s new residents are single and childless and their lifestyle is in many ways inconsistent with the needs of small or growing families.
Brown is right when he says, “The gap between the haves and have nots is growing in the District.”
Once again, while policy-makers recommend improving education and making available more affordable housing, the poor folks who may some day benefit from it will be gone. Even in Ward 8, where Mayor Anthony Williams proudly proclaims to have had the greatest number of new housing starts than in any other ward in the city, affordable housing is greater than in most wards, but it is steadily declining. With a host of new apartment complexes underway, the average rent for a one bedroom starts at about $750 a month, and price of new homes start at about $250,000. Poor families of four or more will soon be unable to afford to live in the city’s most affordable ward.
It is the backdrop of these statistics and the families and children whose lives they represent that make difficult to support a move to build a new baseball stadium. If the District were to put all of its resources behind improving the quality of life for children and families, there is no doubt their lives would be improved. The evidence is there and it shows in the statistics. No one will ever underestimate the District government’s urgency when it came to childhood immunizations. Now we exceed the country, and that’s a good thing.
So, when we see these numbers, it is clear that children are not first in D.C. And, if it were not for the Kids Count Report which provides statistics for the public at-large to review, we would only have the low test scores, homeless, abused and murdered children to prove what we already know, that if things don’t change for the better, they will only get worse.
For Denise Rolark Barnes send email to drbarnes@washingtoninformer.com
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