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Dr. Wade Horn Addresses United Nations
Dr. Wade Horn, Assistant Secretary for Children and Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, addressed the United Nations General Assembly on December 6, 2004, at a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the International Year of the Family. Dr Horn spoke on the relationship between the state and the family, emphasizing the government's obligation to protect the family as an institution.
In describing the principles that guide family policy in America, Dr. Horn noted four government obligations:
- Government should create conditions that allow strong and healthy families to thrive.
- Government should recognize the unique and irreplaceable contributions of mothers and fathers to their children.
- Government policy should strengthen healthy marriages and, where possible, the two-parent family.
- Government policy should recognize that every child has dignity and worth.
Dr. Horn concluded his remarks by saying, " . . . governments ought to honor and support the family as the most critical structure for insuring the well-being of children who are, after all, our future."
The full text of Dr. Horn's speech can be found on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Global Health website at www.globalhealth.gov/IYF_Horn_120604.shtml.
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