May 9, 2021 | Memphis, Tennessee
At the Alliance, our commitment to see and address structural racism brings us today to the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, where we have been moved by the courage of men and women who said, “No more.” The marchers. The boycotters. The voter registration volunteers. Black members of communities and their White allies who were targeted, beaten, and killed because they decided they would wait no longer for crumbs of justice.
We didn’t plan it this way, but our trip today coincides with the #DayWithoutChildCare.
We have also been moved by this nationwide action to highlight the inequity that plagues our failing child-care system. We stand with the child-care providers and parents who are leading this campaign, because it’s clear that equity in early care and education is essential to equitable opportunity in every community across the country.
We share their belief that it’s time for equitable wages.
We share their belief that it’s time for equitable access.
We share their belief that it’s time for an equitable system.
It’s time for Congress and state legislatures to guarantee child care for every family who needs it, whether Black, White, or Brown, and help families pay for it. It’s time to ensure child-care providers – who are disproportionately Black and Brown women – earn a living wage, on par with K-12 teachers. And it is time to make sure state systems are diverse, equitable, and inclusive of high-quality child-care options in schools, centers, and home-based family child care.
The structures that perpetuate inequity in early care and education can be hard to see.
Standing on the grounds of this memorial to sacrifice, we are proud to support the growing movement of child-care providers and parents that is shining a bright light on injustice.
