Starting Kids Off Right with Universal Preschool
By Assemblymember Alberto TorricoFifty-six years ago, Oliver Brown took the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas all the way to the Supreme Court so his daughter Linda wouldn’t have to walk a mile to her segregated school. Against all odds, and forging a new American era, Mr. Brown and his daughter emerged victorious. This landmark case set the precedent that separate is inherently unequal and that all children deserve access to the same, quality education.
Today, we face a new type of “separate but unequal.” A recent study showed that only 53 percent of low-income children attend preschool, while 80 percent of children whose families make more than $100,000 get the vital head start preschool provides.
Evidence has shown that children who attend preschool get a better start in life, become better students in school and are much less likely to be incarcerated for criminal behavior as adults.
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Downsizing the Prison-Industrial Complex
By Cathy Cockrell (interview of criminologist Barry Krisberg)
UC Berkeley NewsCenter
Q. The public mood on crime and punishment appears to go in cycles. Where would you say we are today?
A. We're actually in a good place at the moment, I think. Crime is way down nationally and in California, and there isn't support for building new prisons or expanding corrections. Recent opinion polls show that the public opposes most cuts in public spending, but does support reductions in prison budgets. Our terrible financial crisis may be giving rise to smarter policies.
For juvenile justice, it's an interesting time. Both nationwide and on the state level, the number of kids (ages 12 to 18) who are locked up is substantially down. In 2004 there were roughly 7,000 inmates in California's youth prisons; now there are about 1,400. There are fewer than 800 youth locked up in New York State today. Most of the major states are reducing the number of kids in custody.
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UC Berkeley NewsCenter
Q. The public mood on crime and punishment appears to go in cycles. Where would you say we are today?
A. We're actually in a good place at the moment, I think. Crime is way down nationally and in California, and there isn't support for building new prisons or expanding corrections. Recent opinion polls show that the public opposes most cuts in public spending, but does support reductions in prison budgets. Our terrible financial crisis may be giving rise to smarter policies.
For juvenile justice, it's an interesting time. Both nationwide and on the state level, the number of kids (ages 12 to 18) who are locked up is substantially down. In 2004 there were roughly 7,000 inmates in California's youth prisons; now there are about 1,400. There are fewer than 800 youth locked up in New York State today. Most of the major states are reducing the number of kids in custody.
read more
