Leave No Child Behind by Marian Wright Edelman

So many changes have happened since THE BLACK COLLEGIAN was founded in 1970, that if we measure progress by opportunity, it's easy to see how far we have come. Thirty years ago the Civil Rights Movement had just brought the nation's attention to the determined fight for all Americans to have full citizenship and equal participation in our democracy-a struggle for which Black and white Americans were dying. Now as America begins the 21st Century, our ambassador to the rest of the world and one of our most universally respected and admired citizens is a Black man, Secretary of State Colin Powell. Black Americans everywhere are breaking remaining barriers and bright young Black people continue to reach new heights. Your own presence and achievements on college campuses across the country are a testament to the promise that still lies ahead.

Yet even as we celebrate our successes, another way to measure progress is by seeing how far we have left to go-and it is important to remember all those in our community who are still being left behind. Many of you have either been blessed with strong family and community support or were strong enough to beat the odds in absence of that support in order to make sure education was a priority. But many other Black children and youths have not been as fortunate. Consider these recent statistics for Black children living in the United States:

Every five seconds during the school day a Black public school student is suspended, and every 38 seconds during the school day a Black high school student drops out. Every minute a Black child is arrested and a Black baby is born to an unmarried mother. Every three minutes a Black child is born into poverty. Every hour a Black baby dies. Every four hours a Black child or youth under 20 dies from an accident and every five hours one is a homicide victim. And every other day a young Black person under 25 dies from HIV infection and a Black child or youth under 20 commits suicide.

The reality is that in this time of unprecedented wealth and opportunity in our country millions of Black young people are being left behind every day. Too many Black young adults in your generation are not standing where you are today and not enough Black children are being prepared to follow in your footsteps. I am so proud of all that today's Black college students are achieving, but I cannot ignore the fact that a Black girl today has four chances in five, and a Black boy has five chances in six, of never graduating from college. It is time for all of us to do what we can to change these odds.

I believe deeply that it is time for the next great social movement focused on leaving no child behind. This massive new movement must well up from every nook, cranny, and place in our community to insist all children be treated fairly and make sure every child receives a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start, and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities. That is {the Children's Defense Fund's} goal and the goal of the Black Community Crusade for Children (BCCC). But this movement requires major participation, from millions of parents, religious, civic, educational, business, and political leaders-and youths themselves, beginning with you.

The energy, enthusiasm, discipline, leadership ability, and courage that characterized the youth movement of the 1960s still exist in the hearts of young people nationwide. Where better to use them than as part of the powerful new movement for children? As young adults you are already uniquely able to relate to the children and teenagers in your communities and serve as mentors and role models for them. Now is also the right time for you to join together with others to advocate for the changes in our national priorities that will provide fairness for all children.

When children play together, they sometimes get into an argument. But give children the space to work out their differences, and they will do so with remarkable speed and fairness. They have an intrinsic sense of what is right and just-and an intuitive instinct to solve problems fairly. It's not fair that so many children in this wealthy nation have no health insurance, or attend failing schools, or go to bed hungry. We need to relearn what came so naturally to us as children, to see that the big problems really are solved fairly for all young people-not just White or wealthy or healthy ones, but all children.

A commitment to "Leave No Child Behind" is a commitment to be a moral human being and a compassionate nation. It is a result of following our innate, God-given impulse to make a better life for those who follow us on this planet. It requires personal and collective action. This year, the Children's Defense Fund is working to provide the vision around which all Americans of conscience can unite-one that makes "Leave No Child Behind" the guiding purpose and policy for our nation. We will insist that every child has health care; a quality education from preschool through college; a decent standard of living; proper nutrition and housing; and a right to safety that can never be taken away. And young people can speak to all of these issues, loudly and clearly.

I really believe that with all of us working together America can make this happen. I learned more than 35 years ago in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi that being on the side of morality does not by itself guarantee victory. But I also learned that most people are fundamentally good. They are inclined to do the right thing. Faced with a choice between greed and the greater good, most Americans will choose the latter. What's needed to tilt the balance in the right direction is moral leadership-not necessarily from above but most definitely from "below"-from grassroots America. This is where students' servant-leadership is needed most.

The Children's Defense Fund and Black Community Crusade for Children's Student Leadership Network for Children (SLNC) is just one way to get involved. SLNC is a national network of servant-leaders ages 18 to 30 committed to improving the lives of children, and its mission is to mobilize a new generation of leaders eager to serve, empower, and advocate for positive social change through community service and child advocacy. SLNC members receive training through our Ella Baker Child Policy Training Institute, serve as teachers in our summer Freedom Schools, and participate in many other key activities. This year more college students than ever are joining our movement and committing to standing for children. Join them and us in this campaign.

I am convinced that if we continue building a strong, dynamic grassroots movement for our children focused on a compelling, overall vision, it will become an inexorable force that no politician of any party can resist. We simply must generate enough heat on our political leaders so that even the most callous heart will melt. We must lift our voices to new heights and send such a sustained and persistent message that the call to our better angels will be heard and heeded by all.

Together we can finish the work that Dr. King, Mrs. Bethune, Mrs. Parks and so many others began more than 30 years ago-the movement to make sure all of our children stand where you are today, preparing themselves to create and ascend to the next level of success for us to all celebrate.

Marian Wright Edelman is the president of the Children's Defense Fund.