My Op Ed
Professor Dale Cecka, director of the Family Violence Litigation Clinic, penned a recent op-ed in Newsday making her case against anonymous reports of child abuse in New York. "Our child welfare system operates on the basis of fear. Judges, state agencies, legislators, teachers, doctors, social workers and caseworkers fear being blamed for a child fatality. On the other hand, parents fear that anyone — from a vindictive ex to a neighbor with a grudge — can make an anonymous complaint to CPS with impunity. Especially in predominantly Black and brown neighborhoods, this fear is real, visceral and not unfounded: A 2020 report found that Black families in New York are seven times more likely than white families to be reported for child abuse, 13 times more likely to have their children removed — and more often the victims of accusations that are “false positives.” https://nwsdy.li/3zqU5yB
Creative Director/Producer
1wMrs. Colorsworth? Dale Margolin Cecka 🤔 It's amazing that this entire system hasn't undergone another major disruption, yet. One would think, with such high numbers of calls and allegations followed by such a low percentage of actual actionable cases, these callers should have been required to identify themselves. Busywork seems to always be a thing with this agency. What's there to lose if the caller is truly just looking to help the child? Maybe some States, like NY, aim to protect the privacy of these callers, but for what good reason? Also, they would still be protected as only the agency will know who called. I'd love to see, hear, or read a debate on this "in the spirit of the children."