Local Groups Take Stand for Children
Hoping to focus the public’s attention on the needs of children in Ventura County, local education and social service organizations are holding a rally today at the county Government Center.
Ventura’s celebrations of Stand for Children Day are the local counterpart of a national movement that includes a rally at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, organized by the National Children’s Defense Fund.
“Right now, I think that most people would agree that children’s issues are not a government priority,” said Ventura County Supt. of Schools Charles Weis, who will give the keynote address at the rally. “We see it in the plain fact that California ranks 42nd in money spent toward our children’s education.” Weis said children’s issues need to become a top priority of local, state and federal government officials.
Organizers of the event are armed with some grim national statistics: Every nine seconds a child drops out of school; every 10 seconds a child is reported abused or neglected; every 14 seconds a child is arrested; every 32 seconds a baby is born into poverty.
The Ventura rally will include speeches by Carrie Rothstein-Fisch, a child-care specialist, and Joe Mendoza, director of the Migrant Education Program of Ventura County.
The Oxnard High School band and the Children’s Activity Center Choir will provide entertainment.
The rally will be held in the Government Center’s courtyard beginning at 11 a.m.
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