Child Watch® Column

CDF founder and lifelong advocate for children and youth Marian Wright Edelman shares her perspective on current events.

Latest Articles

  • Gun Violence

    Rejecting the Menace of Violence

    On an extraordinary day when an estimated five million people came together at rallies and protests across the country to share their political views nonviolently, political violence still struck our nation.…

  • Honoring Juneteenth

    In 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law the bill that had been passed by unanimous consent in the Senate and 415-14 in the House to establish Juneteenth National Independence Day, June 19, as a federal holiday.…

  • Gun Violence

    Gun Violence Awareness Day

    The day after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, who was running for President, appeared at a Cleveland event and said instead of talking about politics he had to speak about the “mindless menace of violence in America which again stains our land and every one of our lives.” …

  • Early Childhood

    Sixty Years of Head Start

    Head Start began as an eight-week summer program; it has since served nearly 40 million children and families across the United States. But today, like other basic needs programs millions of children, young people, and families rely on, Head Start has been under attack.…

Marian Wright Edelman

Marian Wright Edelman

Marian Wright Edelman is a lifelong advocate for disadvantaged Americans and is the Founder and President Emerita of Children’s Defense Fund (CDF). Under her leadership, CDF has become the nation’s strongest voice for children, youth, and families.

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