Church should speak up for intact families
ALTHOUGH PRESCHOOL for every child in New Mexico may well be a laudable goal, I, too, was mystified by Allen Sánchez’s ad hominem attach on wealthy white voters and their representatives.
As an agent of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, it doesn’t make sense that he would be pushing so hard for preschool as a solution to the achievement gap among children of color or children living in poverty. To the contrary, it would be logical for the local representatives of the church, often criticized for not keeping up with the modern culture, to feel vindicated in its constant defense and promotion of marriage and the traditional nuclear family. In referring to the most recent census data available on census.gov, we can see that a child of any race being raised in a household headed by two married people — not even necessarily the child’s biological parents — is about 20 percent less likely to live in poverty.
The Legislature either cannot or will not address the negative social consequences of children being raised by single parents, but the church is in a unique position to do so. One reason Sanchez gives to justify Archdiocesan support of state-funded preschool is to reduce the number of adverse childhood experiences. Statistically, it is clear that the most dangerous living arrangement for a child is in the home with his or her single mother and her boyfriend. Children living with their mother and her boyfriend are about 11 times more likely to be sexually, physically or emotionally abused than children living with their married biological parents, a fact that has only been underscored by the recent tragic deaths of Omaree Varela, Victoria Maartens and Jeremiah Valencia.
If faith leaders in New Mexico are unwilling to speak the uncomfortable truth that intact families are a child’s best protection against the dehumanizing effects of poverty and racism, who will? Although it is more comfortable to lobby for an additional layer of social spending, isn’t the Christian faith supposed to be about speaking the truth in love rather than merely advocating for a popular nostrum?
ANDREA AIELLO
Rio Rancho