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There are many people in need in Boulder County, on average one of the wealthiest counties in Colorado. There are very many significantly wealthy people, many more who are “quite comfortable and a range with personal wealth extending to those that depend on public and nonprofit programs to feed their families.
Many work at jobs that pay well below a level that allows them to provide the basics for their family. The low wages that have been paid to many minorities and immigrants have allowed the rest of the population to afford goods and services that would otherwise be much less affordable. In essence a subsidy by the poor.
This has been a result of many things including bigotry, after effects of slavery, poor access to equal schools, generational poverty, unequal access to preschool education, and more.
Governments at all levels, churches, nonprofits and individuals have donated and made efforts to address issues of poverty and insufficient family wealth. Efforts are mostly insufficient, late in coming, and too often fail to address systemic issues.
Often the longer an issue is ignored the more expensive it is to address in monetary and human terms. Childcare and early childhood education is a perfect example. There is far more than adequate well documented information that a child that receives quality education from 0 to 3 and through kindergarten is more likely to graduate from high school, attend college, and earn more money as an adult and less likely to have criminal involvement. Quality childcare is clearly a human and financial benefit to the community.
The Early Childhood Alliance proposed an opportunity to address educational disparities and address generational poverty within in the Hispanic community by increasing childcare availability. This opportunity may not have been perfect, but was workable and at a minimum, a starting point for discussion to do some thing.
This was turned down without offering an alternative by the Boulder County Commissioners. It was later oppposed by three groups; one who has responsibility for assisting childcare providers; one who represents many well off businesses and has opposed other initiatives that could help low income individuals and a third that should, and often does help many segments of the community.
Each of these influencers understand the price our community, and some sectors in particular, are paying for the shortage of childcar, as well as, the many benefits, especially to children, of quality childcare.
We would like to help BUT maybe the perfect is the enemy of the good, or do we not care enough or it is not our priority? Whatever. The problem continues to exist. The impacted people remain impacted. Better future for the impacted community and eveyone are pushed down the road.
A similar scenario could be told for other issues.
When have you been asked to help someone, something you might normally do because it was the wrong time or inconvienent?
Bob Norris
Longmont
