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Green Party of New Jersey BLAME FOR CHILD WELFARE TRAGEDY FALLS ON THE STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT |
| For Immediate Release: Thursday, January 16, 2003 Contact: Joe Fortunato, Green Party of New Jersey State Chair, 973-744-5958, josephfortunato@comcast.net Ted Glick, Green Party of New Jersey State Coordinator, 973-338-9214, glickforsenate2002@yahoo.com GREEN PARTY OF NEW JERSEY SAYS BLAME FOR THE CHILD WELFARE TRAGEDY FALLS ON THE STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR INADEQUATE FUNDING NOT ON THE WORKERS WHO STRUGGLE WITH THE SYSTEM The state should not scapegoat union welfare workers involved in the tragic case of a dead child and abuse of two others when the fault lies in the lack of adequate funds and resources given by the state to the Division of Youth and Family Services, the Green Party of New Jersey said today. "If a worker or supervisor was negligent in not striving to fulfilling their responsibilities, they should be punished, but that does not seem to be the case here where a caseworker struggled with an extraordinarily swollen case load and her direct supervisor was lauded by her union president as one of the best in the state," said Joe Fortunato, state Green Party chairman. "The heavy label of official negligence here instead falls on the state which has long kept DYFS underfunded and especially on the Federal Government which its steady cuts in funding to states for welfare, families and children." "The Republican administration, overriding weak Democratic resistance, has shown it is more willing to spend billions on war and in filling coffers of corporations. It's favorite kind of welfare is corporate welfare. As a result one child is dead and two others are recovering from severe abuse in the latest revealed atrocity of poverty and caretaker neglect." "The actions of the state government now and Gov. McGreevey are akin to closing the barn door after the horses have fled," Ted Glick, Green Party state coordinator, said. "We welcome any redress, but wish it had come without the goad of this latest tragedy." For more information: The Green Party of New Jersey http://gpnj.org The Green Party of the United States http://gp.org - END - |
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