Eva M. Clayton: “Today more than ever our children need us to stand up for them. As a parent and as a grandparent, I simply want to pave…”

“Today more than ever our children need us to stand up for them. As a parent and as a grandparent, I simply want to pave a path to the future for our young people. Unfortunately, there are those who want to keep them trapped in the past. There could be no more urgent time than this moment in history to make a difference for our children. Consider this. Every 5 hours, a child dies from abuse or neglect. There is a connection with the fact that every 32 seconds a baby is born into poverty. From the dawn of life to the dusk of life, from birth to early death, far too many of our children are behind when born, live wretched lives and die before they truly have a chance to live. We can stop this vicious, downward spiral. We can move our children from under the dark cloud of planning their funerals to the bright sunshine of planning their futures. That is why I am here, Mr. Speaker, to stand up for WIC, to stand up for the nutritional needs of our country's poorest women and children.”