Fourteen arrests at California protest in support of childcare reforms

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Guardian

Fourteen arrests at California protest in support of childcare reforms

Activists taken into custody for blocking road and released after peaceful demonstration supporting improvements for daycare workers

Anita Chabria
Thursday 4 June 2015 02.26 EDT

Fourteen women were arrested for blocking an intersection in front of California’s State Capitol building in Sacramento on Wednesday in an act of pre-planned civil disobedience supporting a proposed law that would examine standards for daycare in the state and allow workers to unionize.

That measure, SB 548, passed in the California Senate by a vote of 25-12 hours after the arrests. It now moves to the state Assembly.

“If we can’t take care of our kids how can we do everything else?” said Gilda Valdez, one of those arrested. “The governor has to understand: if we are not taking care of our kids we are not taking care of California.”

California has about 65,000 childcare providers. Many of those are home-based operations where caretakers have little formal training in early childhood education and work long hours for low wages. SB 548 would commission a best-practices study for improving such facilities and issue recommendations on how to enhance the opportunities for learning for both kids and providers.




Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jun/04/fourteen-arrests-at-california-protest-in-support-of-childcare-reforms

[Dustlawyer]

1. I just took a case where a 3 month old died at a licensed home daycare.

They left the child alone for two hours on a regular bed. Not much requirements to get a license other than pay the fee and a brief inspection.