Blog

Council for Children’s Rights works to affirm rights for children daily through our individual services, research, and policy work. We are heartbroken and grieve over the senseless deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and the countless others before them. These tragedies continue to make headlines because, for too long, we have allowed racism to thrive in our systems with the absence of adequate and equitable structural change.

Children and families do not exist in a vacuum but, rather, are embedded in our communities and in our systems. Specifically, systems such as education, healthcare, and justice, intersect with social determinants of health, to create a set of conditions within which children and families live, work, play, learn, and interact. Those conditions affect their quality of life and ability to thrive.

In early March 2020, Council for Children’s Rights’ Individual Advocacy Team was gearing up for our next “New Volunteer Training” for the Special Education Advocacy for Kids (SpEAK) Volunteer Program. We were finalizing the training materials, contacting the planned attendees with last minute details, and polishing our presentations, excited about sharing the material and getting to know our new volunteers.

Thank you as always for your support of Council for Children’s Rights, and our mission to serve the children in our community by providing essential legal representation and advocacy. We are living in a time of crisis and great uncertainty, and because of that, the public services that our legal teams provide are needed now more than ever.

With cases of COVID-19 multiplying by the day, it is only a matter of time before the virus enters jails and prisons holding Mecklenburg County youth – if it hasn’t already. While there has been some discussion about the devastating impact this will have on incarcerated people, little attention has been paid to one of the most vulnerable populations in custody: our children.

During this unprecedented public health crisis, the Individual Advocacy Team at Council for Children’s Rights continues to work diligently to provide ongoing support and advocacy for the children we serve. Our attorneys and volunteers are closely monitoring developments, assessing the effects, and responding to resulting challenges faced by our children.

Thank you as always for your support of Council for Children’s Rights, and our mission to serve the children in our community by providing essential legal representation and advocacy. We are living in a time of crisis and great uncertainty, and because of that, the public services that our legal teams provide are needed now more than ever.

During this unprecedented time, using data and research to inform policy is a crucial tool in advocating for our children and families. At no time in our agency’s history has our philosophy that children’s rights are human rights been more true or more in jeopardy; and without a State budget, the health and safety of our communities is a an elusive target.

In honor of Juvenile Justice Awareness Month, Council for Children’s Rights, in partnership with Race Matters for Juvenile Justice, is pleased to present the third annual Juvenile Justice Report using both local and state data.  Throughout the month of October, we've...

On December 1, 2019, North Carolina Raise the Age legislation will take effect; that means that 16- and 17-year-olds will no longer automatically be treated as adults when accused of a crime. A great deal has changed since the 2017 legislation was ratified and many...

Since 2008, the month of October honors efforts to prevent children from entering the juvenile and criminal justice systems. It is a month where advocates emphasize the need to eliminate the use of solitary confinement for youth, reduce the use of...

Since 2008, the month of October honors efforts to prevent children from entering the juvenile and criminal justice systems. It is a month where advocates emphasize the need to eliminate the use of solitary confinement for youth, reduce the use of...

Summer 2019: Camara’s Adventures in the Queen City  |  Part 6 This summer, I have intellectually and personally grown in ways I never thought I would. My experiences in Charlotte and at Council for Children’s Rights (CFCR), as a DukeEngage student and...