Charles Lerner speaks on a powerful panel about his experiences living in poverty, being in foster care and how this shapes his work. The panel begins about 8 minutes in. Take a listen!

Massachusetts CASA is determined to be a leader in contributing to a more compassionate, equitable, and just child welfare system. A system that supports families in the way that they deserve and prevents children being removed unnecessarily. And if removal is unavoidable, a system that ensures that children and youth receive the care and attention that we demand for those within our own families and parents receive the support that they need to have their children returned as quickly as possible.

Here were just a few of our efforts in 2023 which were ALL led by experts with lived experience:

* We led a first of its kind state-wide training for CASA staff and volunteers on implicit bias and interrupting poverty.
* We piloted a pre-service equity and justice-centered training program for new volunteers. They learned the “real” history of the child welfare system, explored the concept of societal neglect, dove deeper into the root causes of racial disproportionality and disparities in the child welfare system, and were challenged to explore their motivations for volunteering.
* We launched a first-ever statewide PR campaign on public radio and social media that directly addressed the conflation of poverty and neglect and racial disproportionality in foster care. The campaign reached over 1.5 million people across New England and significant funds were allocated towards reaching BIPOC community members through advertising on shows such as Latino USA and Code Switch, as well as targeting specific zip codes on social media.
* We testified in front of the legislature and made a call for action to get bolder AND much more sensible about child welfare solutions. We challenged the legislators, and all child welfare stakeholders present, to shrink the system by better supporting families. We stressed the importance of keeping children OUT of the system which research clearly has found often harms children as much as it “protects” them.

These are just a few steps we took in 2023. We will relentlessly, humbly, and unapologetically continue to demand better of ourselves and others.

If you’d like to get involved, please hit me up @charles@macasa.org! You can also visit our website to sign up to volunteer, make that end of the year donation, or subscribe to our email list at https://macasa.org/.

Happy Holidays to All!

Recording this live podcast with my sister Molly was one of the most significant honors of my life. https://lnkd.in/ewQTx__k .

It was Molly’s first “public appearance”. It’s a very difficult podcast to hear because it’s raw, unfiltered, brutally honest, and highlights the worst of our child protection system. At the same time, I hope it also educates, uplifts, and honors voices too often silenced. I’m beyond proud of my sister. I’m appreciative of Angela Tucker who is a remarkable host. She’s extraordinarily compassionate and created a space that led to a very unique outcome. Thank you to Treehouse Foundation and Judy Cockerton for their vision and creating a platform for others to be heard.

I’ve been part of the child welfare system for 48 years. I’m moving away from telling my story and moving towards ensuring that others have the opportunity to tell theirs. I’m moving away from explaining the realities of the system and moving torwards shifting those realities. As I say in the podcast, we are removing limbs from children and families in the child welfare system. When you remove limbs from a tree in the wrong way, you kill the tree. We’re destroying families, disproportionately BIPOC and/or those living in poverty. Join me in disrupting what has always been, repairing the harm, and getting it right. hashtag#getitright.

On behalf of the Commonwealth’s seven CASA programs, 700 volunteers, and close to 1,000 children we advocate on behalf of, I was proud to testify yesterday at the Statehouse on various foster care related bills. I specifically focused on Massachusetts moving forward on a Foster Child Bill of Rights. You can view my three minutes of testimony at about 1 hour and 27 minutes into the video. https://malegislature.gov/Events/Hearings/Detail/4705 My family’s history with the child welfare system goes back over 60 years. My main calls to action:

● It’s time to get bold AND much more sensible about solutions. If you want to create meaningful change in the foster care system, shrink it!! Support families, ensure that they have their basic needs met (including financially), and keep children OUT of this system.
● It’s time to listen to those who’ve experienced foster care firsthand and they should be driving our decisions.
● And lastly, if children do enter into foster care, ensure that every one of them has a member of the community zealously advocating for them in and outside of the courtroom. With all due respect to my child welfare partners, we do NOT have it covered!

An accomplishment that so many should be proud of. The first-ever CASA program in Southeastern Massachusetts. Get involved if you’re in the area or pass the word along. Every child in foster care should have a zealous advocate to ensure that they receive the care they deserve and get out of foster care ASAP.

This is heartbreaking and all too familiar to those who’ve experienced foster care, myself included. Some studies suggest that anywhere from 25-40% of children in foster care will experience abuse or neglect while in the very system that is tasked to “protect” them. The system, as we know it, must be abolished. Otherwise, more children and families will be harmed.

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/08/11/metro/massachusetts-house-of-horrors-settlement/