Platform 2012: Children, Young Adults and Their Families
California Democrats believe that we must invest in the well-being of children and young people in order for them to become thriving and productive members of society. To do so, we will work to provide them with a healthy start, a solid education, and a safe community in which to thrive.
To help children and young adults reach their full potential, California Democrats commit to:
- Expand pre-natal, peri-natal and well-baby care, as well as provide comprehensive immunization services;
- Lift at-risk families and working poor families out of poverty so that they can become independent and lead self-sufficient lives;
- Support the passage and implementation of nutritionally-healthy school lunch and breakfast programs;
- Promote policies and support agencies that are responsible for providing mental health services, domestic violence prevention, gang prevention, anti-bullying programs, substance abuse prevention, parenting skills, and other social services that are critical to the health and well being of children and families in need;
- Ensure Child Protection Services and social workers have the resources needed to protect children and support foster youth;
- Enhance education and development with community-based enriching experiences; promote early childhood education by providing hands-on learning opportunities in enriching environments which engage parents, caregivers, and educators as partners in all relevant domains of early learning and development including language, math, social-emotional, and self-regulation;
- Ensure access to high quality, reasonably-priced childcare, preschool and early development centers and strong, community-based after school programs;
- Expand parks, recreation, and mentoring centers for children and young people;
- Improve the foster care system and ensure that child abuse andneglect court proceedings that protect the welfare of children are accessibleand swift, and aggressively enforce child-support payment rulings; and,
- Support the removal or ban of toxic substances from all toys, equipment, and materials sold or used in California