In this op-ed, an advocate says a multibillion-dollar federal initiative is needed to bring disconnected youth back into the mainstream—not just for their sake, but for ours, too.
The good news is that juvenile justice reform is underway in New York. The bad news, argues this op-ed, is that reform won’t work unless we recognize the true causes of youth crime.
The city’s Department of Education wants to close 19 more schools that aren’t performing well. But will that help disadvantaged students?
Around the country, states are rethinking restrictions on work, aid and housing that punish people who have already done their time.
In documents describing the multimillion-dollar Ring of Steel surveillance network, the redactions are as revealing.
In January and February the national unemployment rate held steady at 9.7 percent— lower than in late 2009. That was seen as a sign that the economy was rounding the corner.. But unemployment among men and blacks was little changed. About 2.5 million people—400,000 more than a year earlier—were considered marginally attached to the labor force, meaning they weren’t considered unemployed but said they wanted a job. According to the EPI, there were still 6 job seekers per available job.Even after a national recovery has started, pain might persist in New York.
While the mild post-9/11 recession was a dry run, the current downturn is the first real test of the safety net since welfare reform.
Publicly funded help for the needy, from food assistance to job training, dries up further under the proposed budget.
A survey of community press stories fills in the colorful portrait of the year that was.
This ugly problem is a local one, too, and a city task force plans to increase public awareness with a campaign next year.
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