Watch News Coverage: Child Care Providers Demonstrate On Congressman Aaron Schock’s Office in Peoria, Hold Protest in Chicago

Wednesday, August 14, 2013: Child care providers and parents demonstrated outside Congressman Aaron Schock’s office (18th District) to call on Congress to end harmful budget cuts through the sequester, restore Head Start funding, and invest in vital services for families.  Providers and working families say Congress needs to get its priorities straight as it continues to slash Head Start funding and vital services for working families while refusing to ask big corporations, which are making record profits, to pay their fair share.

Peoria CBS Ch 31: Child Care Providers Protest Congressman Schock:

Chicago: Telemundo: Child Care Providers Urge Congress to Restore Head Start Funding, End Sequester

In East St. Louis, providers and parents brought the same message to 15th district Congressman John Shimkus.

“We had a van, an SUV, and some cars all full of people who wanted to make their voices heard,” said East. St. Louis child care provider Endia Ford. “We brought our kids with us, marched and chanted, and delivered a letter to his office about how important it is to fund Head Start instead of tax breaks for the rich. It was wonderful to have the little ones along, helping us fight for the programs they’re a part of.”

On March 1, 2013, $85 billion in across-the-board budget cuts – known as the sequester — went into effect. These horrific cuts are a costly, self-inflicted wound to our economy and the middle class, including for working families and single moms. For example, Head Start will be cut by $400 million in FY2013, which will result in 70,000 fewer children served and would force tens of thousands of employees to either lose their jobs or rely on cash-strapped states and localities to pick up their salaries instead.

The negative effects of the sequester also results in the loss of 750,000 American jobs according to the Congressional Budget Office, threatening the economic security of many middle class and vulnerable Americans. In addition, estimates by the Congressional Research Service indicate that the 2 percent cut to Medicare under sequestration would cost 212,000 jobs in the healthcare industry alone.

Our Solution: That’s why Congress needs to do more to make sure the wealthy and big corporations pay their fair share of taxes. A fair budget agreement should raise more revenue from wealthy Americans and big corporations. There are hundreds of billions in tax loopholes used by big business and the wealthy to allow them to avoid taxes that could give us more revenue and prevent cuts to the vital services our communities need.