US High-Level Office for Children Is Critical for Children’s Rights
by Miriam Abaya and Colleagues
The United States remains the only country in the world that has failed to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). The CRC is the most widely ratified human rights treaty in the world.
Currently, the United States falls short on various social and environmental determinants of child health and wellbeing. These factors include poverty, healthcare access, nutrition, homelessness, and separation from family.
This article describes the findings of participants at a recent series of workshops, hosted by Phoenix Zones Initiative, First Focus on Children, and the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights.
The workshops addressed the lack of leadership for child rights in the United States.
As the Viewpoint notes, participants identified the need for a high-level federal entity to oversee children’s issues. A high-level authority would advance key principles of the CRC.
The coalition developed three options which would meet the recommendations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and promote children’s rights:
- A White House Office for Children
- Cabinet leadership and/or a department for children
- An Independent Children’s Commissioner