Archives: Voices

Antisemitism in the U.S.: A state of emergency

Antisemitism is a chronic disease and we’re currently living through an outbreak. But we have the power to prevent antisemitic acts from continuing to spread.

We’re here because we earned it.

Race-conscious admissions policies help schools see the full picture. When those policies are reversed we see that the whole student body suffers.

COVID-19 Watch: Tracking Hardship, November 11, 2022

The Medicaid and health edition.  Health care was on the ballot in several states this past Tuesday. In South Dakota, 42,500 additional people will eventually be eligible for Medicaid benefits after voters approved Medicaid expansion. In Oregon, voters approved an historic measure that amends the state’s constitution to mandate that all residents have access to “cost-effective, clinically appropriate and affordable health care.” And in Arizona, voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 209, which reduces the amount of interest creditors can charge for health debt from 10 percent to 3 percent. Meanwhile, on the federal level, there are urgent health care issues that Congress must address when members return later this month.

In time of inflation, support still growing for bringing back expanded Child Tax Credit

Last week, Voices for Human Needs reported on renewed efforts throughout the U.S. to urge Congress to once again expand the Child Tax Credit. As families struggle with rising prices — everything from the food they buy to rising rents to increased energy costs — action is needed more than ever. This week, the calls for CTC expansion continued, with new stories in six states.

Unspoken promises and the threat to the American Dream 

As the child of immigrant parents, there are certain unspoken promises you make to them. You promise to do well in school, stay out of trouble, go to college, and get a good job. You promise to fight through the systemic barriers and racism to achieve the American Dream they so longed for. You promise to make their sacrifices worth it. 

411 groups tell Congress: Enact House-proposed spending levels in FY 2023 Appropriations

More than 411 local, state, and national groups signed a letter delivered today to every House and Senate office calling on Congress to agree to House-proposed spending levels for domestic and international (non-defense) discretionary programs in an omnibus funding bill needed by December 16. A copy of the letter, along with the 411 signers, is available here.  

Wishes for Paul Pelosi’s quick recovery 

The news of the attack on Paul Pelosi, husband of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, fills us with dismay. We wish him a speedy and complete recovery, and want Speaker Pelosi to know we are holding her and her family in our thoughts and prayers. 

COVID-19 Watch: Tracking Hardship, October 28, 2022

The invest in education edition. This week, the largest standardized test results in years came out, and we received another snapshot of just how far behind the pandemic has left many students. The National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) – the “nation’s report card” — tested hundreds of thousands of fourth and eighth graders across the country. Reading scores are down and math scores plummeted by the largest margin in the history of the NAEP program, which began in 1969.  

Friday, October 28 is Vote Early Day 

CHN believes in the power of mobilizing everyone to get involved in democracy, whether it’s ensuring that those who can vote do vote, encouraging people to support democracy in as many activities as possible beyond casting their own ballot,  (like election protection or poll greeting).  As part of this effort, CHN is promoting Vote Early Day, which this election cycle falls on Friday, October 28, the Friday before Halloween. CHN’s partnership with Vote Early Day encourages current and potential voters to register to vote and make a plan to vote early – studies show that people who make a plan to vote are much more likely to do so. 

Vote Forward: Voter engagement with a more personal touch 

The Coalition on Human Needs does not, and by law cannot, endorse candidates for partisan office. This is because, like many of the groups we partner with, our nonprofit tax status does not allow it. But what we can do, In keeping with our mission to lift up low-income and other vulnerable populations, is to encourage people to vote. And so CHN is a proud partner of a broad-based national effort to encourage voter turnout by participating in Vote Forward, a campaign to recruit volunteers to send  millions of letters to potential voters in underserved communities in key states.

COVID-19 Watch: Tracking Hardship, October 14, 2022

The “twindemic” is coming edition. Health care professionals are bracing for a quadruple whammy this winter that is expected to severely test hospitals across the country. Already, flu cases are on the upswing throughout the U.S., and public health experts warn this could be the worst flu season in years. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of new COVID-19 cases continue to be reported daily. And on top of all this, many hospitals, particularly children’s hospitals, emergency rooms and pediatric units are dealing with what in some states is a flood of children sick with respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV.