This article was written by Global Women’s Strike and Payday for the French website Ritimo, where it was printed in the June 2017 edition of their magazine Passerelle, “Féminismes ! Maillons forts du changement social” (“Feminisms! Strong links for social change”), in both French and Spanish. Below is the article in English.

By Phoebe Jones, Global Women’s Strike, and Eric Gjertsen, Payday men’s network

“Holding a vigil for Lt Watada on the street, we met two mothers who held a weekly picket of the city Department of Human Services (DHS) to demand their children back. This is when the DHS Give Us Back Our Children group was formed. We soon found that Philadelphia at the time had the highest rate of taking children of any city of its size in the country. One in ten children in the city have dealings with the child welfare system, and the rate of removal and adoption of Black children is disproportionately high. Lack of housing can mean losing your kids, and Philadelphia has an ongoing housing crisis.

“In the course of organizing, we trained ourselves in a number of ways. We learned how to make a video, and used this to tell the story from the point of view of the mothers – which has rarely been done. (You can view it here).  We learned how to deal with hostile social workers and lawyers who refuse to speak to their clients. (The lack of accountable lawyers, even women, continues to be a deep problem. They are not used to taking direction from poor women or confronting the state on their behalf.) We learned how to gather support inside and outside of court, when to organise public demonstrations, and how to educate and cultivate journalists and academics. We stuck to our principles of self-help, and insisted that the women and men who come for ‘help’ write down a concise summary of their own case so they can work with others but be in charge of the direction.”

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Carolyn Hill and Pat Albright of the Philadelphia-based self-help group DHS Give Us Back Our Children, sister to Los Angeles’ DCFS Give Us Back Our Children, are among those who were interviewed and are quoted in this revealing article.  Professor Dorothy Roberts  (author of Shattered Bonds, The Color of Child Welfare and a co-signer of our Amicus Brief to PA Superior Court in support of Carolyn Hill’s plea for custody of her nieces) and Dr Mical Raz (author and professor at University of Pennsylvania who has been supportive of our work) are also quoted in the article.   Please add your comments to the article!

Thursday, June 29, 2017 By Maya Schenwar and Erica Meiners, Truthout | Report

(Image: Lauren Walker / Truthout)

Sarah Jaffe interviewed Rev. Annie Chambers of Big Momma’s House in Baltimore, Rachel West of US PROStitutes Collective in the SF Bay Area, and Pat Gowens of Welfare Warriors on the RISE Out of Poverty Act, while they were in Chicago for the People’s Summit. You can also hear audio from the interviews on The Baffler website here.

Thursday, June 29, 2017 By Sarah Jaffe, Truthout | Interview

Rev. Annie Chambers speaks at the International Women’s Day Gathering Rally in Baltimore, Maryland, March 8, 2017.

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Phoebe Jones (Global Women’s Strike, Philadelphia), Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-WI), Pat Gowens (Welfare Warriors, Milwaukee) and Reverend Annie Chambers (Big Momma’s House, Baltimore) at People’s Summit 2017. Photos by Rachel West (US PROStitutes Collective, San Francisco Bay Area), who was also a member of the Welfare and Caregivers Delegation to the Summit.

Welfare and Caregivers delegation members Phoebe Jones & Rev. Annie Chambers and Rep. Gwen Moore urging support for the RISE Out of Poverty Act which would make ending child poverty the goal of federal welfare policy

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Several thousand people from diverse movements around the country are coming together for the 2017 The People’s Summit, where they will help to create a People’s Agenda. However as it stands now poverty is not part of the agenda, and our delegation will work to change that. Rooted in the movements that came together behind Bernie Sanders, the People’s Summit is attracting organizers from across the country.

Rev. Annie Chambers, Big Momma’s House, Baltimore Pat Gowens, Welfare Warriors, Milwaukee Phoebe Jones, Global Women’s Strike, Philadelphia Margaret Prescod, Women of Color in the GWS, Los Angeles Rachel West, US PROStitutes Collective, SF Bay Area

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Calling All Women!

Women Speak Out at the DNC
FOR JUSTICE, SURVIVAL & A LIVING WAGE FOR ALL

Tuesday, July 26, 12 noon – 2pm
Broad Street Ministry, 315 S. Broad St. Phila.
btw Spruce & Pine, Walnut-Locust stop on Broad St (Orange) Line

All welcome! Childcare ● Refreshments ● Wheelchair accessible

Mothers, grandmas, nurses, teachers, homecare & domestic workers, students, victims of domestic violence, LGBTQ, farmers, campaigners for justice & for the environment, those with disabilities…

Let our voice and demands be heard loud and clear as delegates and protesters gather for the Democratic National Convention. Continue reading →

Global Women’s Strike & Women of Color in the Global Women’s Strike events for Women’s History Month, March 2016

In the Philadelphia area Continue reading →

SAN JOSE: We are pleased to announce that Margaret Prescod, Women of Color in the Global Women’s Strike, co-founder of Black Coalition Fighting Back Serial Murders, and host of Pacifica Radio’s Sojourner Truth, is speaking at the USSF Plenary on Saturday June 27, at 6:30pm, Washington United Youth Center.

And in PHILADELPHIA that Shandre Delaney, mother of prisoner whistleblower Carrington Keys and coordinator of the Justice for the Dallas 6 Support Campaign, will be speaking at the USSF Plenary on Saturday June 27, at 7pm, at Temple University Student Center Room 200.

In both Philadelphia and San Jose

►Film screening: Tales of the Grim Sleeper, presented by Black Coalition Fighting Back Serial Murders. Did you know that 200 Black Women are missing in South Los Angeles, 100 suspected to be victims of a serial killer, and that law enforcement referred to the victims as “NHI” (No Humans Involved)? Don’t miss this film! SAN JOSE: THURSDAY 10:30AM @ Sacred Heart Community Services / PHILLY: TBA

►Action Table and Petitioning center for the Living Wage for All Workers including Mothers and other Caregivers! Find out how you can get involved in this urgent campaign!

Sign petition: http://bit.ly/livingwage4carers

Please help our grassroots delegation get there!
(Through our fiscal sponsor Women in Dialogue)

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Congratulations to Welfare Warriors for this excellent coverage! Post a comment on the original story here.

CBS 58

Milwaukee -A group of activists is claiming that Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin is taking kids away from their parents without proof of abuse or neglect.

Lashei Dickerson is the mother of three kids in Milwaukee. She claims Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin Community Services division took her children away because she has a learning disability.

“They shouldn’t be using my disability against me,” said Dickerson. “I feel that isn’t abuse and neglect… both of my kids were removed from me because of how they felt.”

Dickerson says she has complied with what the agency has asked of her. She has obtained a home, clothes for her children, has gone to anger management classes and received mental evaluations, as well as other conditions. However, her children are still in the system.

That’s why the organization “Welfare Warriors” held a rally Wednesday morning outside of Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin Community Services division in West Allis.

“The problem is, they are illegally detaining children who have never ever been abused or neglected by their family,” said Patricia Owens, who has been advocating for mothers like Dickerson for almost 30 years.

“They are taking children from mothers because the mothers have low IQs.. they say the mothers are mentally ill, sometimes physically ill, but none of them are legal reasons to take a child,” Dickerson said.

The organization has been successful to help other mothers in similar situations and are now doing their best to get Dickerson’s children back as well.

“I’m just staying strong and doing whatever it takes to get my kids home,” Dickerson said.

Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin sent CBS 58 a statement saying:

“Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin Community Services provides a wide range of services to support families and the children who are under our care. Our primary concern is always to keep kids physically and emotionally healthy and provide permanency, stability and well-being for all children.”

Workshop: “Fighting your case to win justice & build the movement”

Friday April 10
4:30-7:30pm Tabernacle United Church, 3700 Chestnut St, Phila

Followed by Q&A; sharing strategies & resources across sectors.

For those fighting criminalization, discrimination or deportation ● having their children removed ● police/prison guard violence ● elder guardianship abuse ● denial of benefits ● rape victims including those wrongly accused of making a false allegation ● whistleblowers facing retaliation ● groups struggling under the weight of cases while also fighting for change . . . This workshop is based on the principles of self-help, accountability, and holding non-profits and professionals to account. Sponsored by: Global Women’s Strike and Every Mother is a Working Mother Network Co-sponsors: Human Rights Coalition, Payday men’s network, Peacehome Campaigns, Women and Trans Prisoner Defense Committee

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