On December 1, Children’s Defense Fund Founder and President Marian Wright Edelman connected with child advocates throughout the Bay Area. Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and the Rosenberg Foundation co-hosted an inspirational event at Oakland City Hall, Building a Stronger Future for Our Children.
Mayor Schaaf told more than 250 people in attendance that meeting Marian Wright Edelman was a lifelong dream. Mayor Schaaf highlighted the need to address the challenges of inequity for children in Oakland: “This city is on fire for its children – and we are ready to do this work.” Angela Glover Blackwell, CEO of PolicyLink and board member at Children’s Defense Fund, introduced Marian Wright Edelman.
Marian Wright Edelman delivered a rousing address. “We have no right to give up on any child,” said Mrs. Edelman. CDF-CA Executive Director Alex Johnson closed out the event with a call to action to support the organization’s policy work in 2016: “We need to invest on the front end so we don’t have to invest more on the back end.”
Then, Marian Wright Edelman joined state Senator Mark Leno at a press conference to announce the introduction of the Stop the Torture of Children Act, a CDF-CA co-sponsored bill to restrict solitary confinement for youth in California. “There should be no place in the United States for torture of children, for solitary confinement of children,” said Mrs. Edelman.
San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee and the Rosenberg Foundation hosted an evening reception at San Francisco City Hall. Mrs. Edelman called on the policy and foundation leaders in attendance to “raise of ruckus for children.”
View photos from the events
