Working for Kids
KIDS' HEALTH
Senator Kerry knows that nothing is more important than the health
of America's
children. He sponsored the Kids Come First Act, which expands both Medicaid and the State
Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to provide health insurance to the nation's eleven million uninsured kids. If passed, states across the country will save more than $6 million a year,
and every child will have health care. Click here to read about Senator Kerry's efforts to give more kids health care.
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IN MASSACHUSETTS: Kerry recently attended a health care rally at Children's Hospital in Boston. He advocated for expanding health care for thousands of children in Massachusetts and throughout the country through the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
- IN CONGRESS: Kerry introduced and passed legislation that will assemble a governmental task force whose purpose will be to encourage more enrollment of children in the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
MONEY FOR COLLEGE
Senator Kerry reintroduced legislation to make a refundable tax credit for college education a reality. The College Opportunity Tax Credit Act creates a better way for students and parents to cover student tuition expenses and fees. The bill simplifies the existing credits to make higher education more affordable, and will enable more students to be eligible for tax relief.
PROTECTING CHILDREN
John Kerry was instrumental in passing legislation to close loopholes in existing child Internet protection laws. He succeeded in including "Masha's Law" in the Adam Walsh Child Protection Act, which was signed.
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IN MASSACHUSETTS: On Martin Luther King Day, Senator Kerry sat down with a group of ten young people from Boston at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Roxbury to have an open discussion about teen violence, their neighborhoods, and their life experiences. The Senator asked for their thoughts and experiences, on violence prevention and helping at-risk youth.
IMMIGRATION
- After the New Bedford immigration raid, which separated many young children from their parents, Senator Kerry urged the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director to reunite the stranded children with their parents as soon as possible. Check out Senator Kerry's statement on the New Bedford raid: insert link)
- The Dream Act would give young immigrants a chance to go to college, because every child in America should get the chance to learn, no matter where they were born. Check out Senator Kerry's DREAM Act oped here.
YOUTHBUILD: GIVING AT RISK YOUTH ANOTHER OPTION
Senator Kerry has been a longtime supporter of the YouthBuild
program, which provides at-risk youth a productive role in rebuilding
their lives and their communities. In
1992 Senator Kerry introduced a bill that made YouthBuild a national
program, enabling it to receive federal funding. Since its creation,
60,000 young people have built over 15,000 units of affordable
housing. There are over 226 YouthBuild programs in 43 states for 8,000 young adults,
and Senator Kerry believes that number can ‐ and should - grow.
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Check out Senator Kerry's Op-Ed about Getting More Involved in Your Local Communities here.
RAISING AWARENESS ABOUT CHILDREN IN UGANDA
Sen. Kerry recently took part in a project to raise awareness about children in Uganda. Watch the video here.
The children in Uganda sleep together in the streets every night to protect themselves from being kidnapped by the so-called "Lord's Resistance Army" or LRA. An estimated 20,000 - 50,000 children have been abducted to work as child soldiers and servants since the conflict began in 1987.
In a recent protest, over 1300 activists from Massachusetts, many of them young people and students slept in churches to show solidarity with the children. If you want to find out more about the conflict and the movement, click here: http://www.invisiblechildren.com/home.php.
The Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army have been engaged in negotiations to reach a consolidated peace agreement to resolve the conflict. Together with Senators Feingold, Kennedy, Biden and others, I have been active on this issue, and called upon the President to appoint a senior U.S. diplomat to help facilitate an agreement at the peace talks and stop this humanitarian disaster. I am also a cosponsor of the Child Soldier Prevention Act of 2007, which condemns the use of child soldiers and prohibits U.S. military assistance to the governments that enslave them. Recently, I joined several of my colleagues in calling for $20 million in emergency assistance to help reconstruct the war-torn regions of Uganda.
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