Chapter Five Videos

It’s Not About Grit

“Some Place to Call Home”: Foster Care and Child Welfare

Often conditions of poverty are confused with conditions of neglect, which may mean their children are going hungry and are malnourished, living in an unhealthy or unsafe mold and rat infested building. Unemployment and poverty weigh down on both the mind and the body. The chronic stress they experience coupled with systemic racism and sexism and the inequitable access to quality housing, jobs and health care heightens the crisis for low-income parents struggling with mental illness and drug abuse. Gaining insight into those struggles also provides insight into the wellbeing of their children—our students.
Transcripts of Videos Referenced in Chapter 5
 Video Guide

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I’m Asking Them Why

“It was my brother who was 15, I was 9, and my little brother was 8. And I remember when they took us from the house. You know, I’m asking them, ‘Why?’”

I Had So Much Family I Didn’t Know

“I went through the system all my life, and I had so much family I didn’t know.”

It Makes Me Sad

“Living with a family member who is addicted to prescription pills isn’t easy. You have to check on them. And constantly worry if they’re alright. Things like waking up on time for school get harder than they need to be.”

Things That I Fight with Every Day

“It’s terrible. Sorry. I lost my teeth. I almost lost my daughter earlier this year to protective services . . . the only reason why I’m still here to this day is because of my children.”