Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Our children and youth are suffering from disparities magnified by crisis. School closures challenged education, leaving behind those already struggling academically. Family stresses have risen, and incidents of abuse and neglect are hidden. Youth who are homeless need a safe place to stay. There is always so much more to do. Here is what CCA is doing now: Big Systemic Health Wins - Epilepsy, Diabetes and the ADA As a result of complaints she filed, CCA attorney Bonnie Roswig had two big wins last week. A US Justice Department Decision directed all Tender Care daycare facilities to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and accommodate treatment for children with epilepsy. The decision will have national implicatations for children who have regularly suffered discrimination because of their health status. Working with Attorney Jonathan Chappell, Attorney Roswig also prevailed in US Justice Department Settlement Agreements with Glastonbury, East Lyme, Stamford and Wethersfield that compel schools to provide monitoring for children with Diabetes who wear a monitor. Read more about this here. Racial Justice CCA attorney Samuel Rivera is working to amend the Alvin Penn law, Connecticut's Anti-Racial Profiling law. CCA is urging that the law include data not only on traffic stops, as it does now, but also on pedestrian stops, which would go a long way in preventing harassment of youth by police. Read Attorney Rivera's recent OpEd in the Hartford Courant, "Walking while Black or Brown is not a Crime." Juvenile Justice and Homelessness CCA attorney Stacey Violante Cote is working with statewide partners, the Coalition for Juvenile Justice and the National League of Cities, creating a pilot project in the Stamford Judicial District to address the intersection of juvenile justice and youth homelessness and craft effective programs to keep youth in stable housing. CCA paralegal Tiffany Minakhom helped a recently-released New Haven youth secure safe, temporary housing and food benefits (SNAP), and register for a wait list for a permanent apartment. He had been sleeping in hallways before CCA intervened. Restorative Justice Kia Levey-Burden, Coordinator of the Center's Restorative Justice Project, is conducting virtual restorative justice training and coaching staff at Bridgeport Juvenile Detention Center, Hartford Juvenile Detention Center, Boys and Girls Village, CT Junior Republic, and Manson Youth Institution. Kia Levey-Burden and CCA attorneys Marisa Halm and Adam Yagaloff held an online training on Covid educational issues for the Department of Corrections and Juvenile Probation Officers. Medical Access CCA Deputy Director Jay Sicklick and CCA attorney Patricia Marealle issued a Response to Senate Democrats' Junteenth Agenda for Special Session, urging HUSKY expansion for undocumented children and families. CCA Medical-Legal Partnership attorney Alice Rosenthal conducted presentations for Yale School of Medicine students and students from the Yale President's Public Service Fellowship program, focusing on support for families during COVID and access to New Haven area resources. CCA paralegal Quiana Patton helped a New Haven family resolve legal housing issues with their landlord. The home is now safe and habitable. Education CCA attorney Kathryn Meyer is helping to lead a statewide group convened by the Office of the Child Advocate, challenging the inequities of distance learning and fighting for district and state accountability to ensure that children's needs will be met upon return to school. The group is advocating to remediate academic and social-emotional damage caused by school closures. Immigration CCA attorney Patricia Marealle is working with Make the Road on Know Your Rights information regarding Bridgeport students' access to bilingual education. She is teaching ELL parents about their children's rights for summer school and the upcoming school year. Unique Covid Resources for Youth CCA produced short legal rights videos for youth on Electronic Stimulus Payments and Connecticut's Utility Payment Moratorium. Videos on the state's Eviction Moratorium and on Access to Food will be posted shortly. Additional resources are on our websites at speakupteens.org and cca-ct.org. | 
