The reality is that childcare is and has been an issue for a lot of our hardworking families in this city. This pandemic has only exacerbated the issues around childcare, as centers in our neighborhoods close, as families lose their jobs, some who are on the brink of eviction, and are now slowly returning to the workforce only to have lost their places on waiting lists or find out that their centers are no longer there.
I am here on behalf of the hardworking parents, hardworking child care providers that cannot be here because of work, who as we speak are cleaning the halls of our schools and prepping meals for the children, those who are teaching our children in our communities. Families who now find themselves in debt and/or trying to fill in childcare gaps. Parents who are now returning to work as more restaurants slowly open.
I look forward to seeing the city elevate the conversation of childcare and families, to bring it to the forefront as a critical issue, an issue of city infrastructure and directly related to the city economy.