Where is the Outrage?

The needless, brutal deaths of American children in our own cities – and not just our own selfish, partisan concerns – is what should outrage Americans. Where is the action from New York City’s Mayor Bill de Blasio to address what the city’s Department of Investigation has termed “systemic problems” at the Administration for Children’s Services? How many children have to die horrible deaths before De Blasio makes addressing the dysfunction of the ACS – which receives taxpayers’ money and employs hundreds of people whose jobs are to protect children – top priority? WHERE are the MARCHES on the part of LIBERALS about the fate of these poor children? Where are the CONSERVATIVES writing columns and peacefully assembling “tea party-style” to hold this mayor and this DYSFUNCTIONAL city agency to account? THIS – that an agency that receives tax money from all of us to protect children – is itself rife with dysfunction – is what should make voters angriest.

But where is the outrage about the deaths of innocent American children – deaths which are supposed to be prevented by a government agency that gets taxpayers’ money to watch out for children – and that it turns out is utterly dysfunctional?

From the New York Post: Ten kids died despite each being the subject of at least four abuse or maltreatment complaints to the city’s troubled child welfare agency in the weeks leading up to the slaying of little Zymere Perkins (pictured above).

This brave little boy told ACS investigators MANY TIMES about his abuse, saying, according to The New York Post, that “he was ‘beaten’ with a ‘belt’ by his mother’s boyfriend when he misbehaved. The boy added the punishment ‘hurt’ but he ‘does not cry,’ the state’s report said.”

Zymere also told ACS workers he didn’t “get to eat good” when he behaved “bad,” according to the New York Post.

Can you imagine the courage of this beautiful child, to tell the truth about what was happening to him in the house of horrors that the ACS failed to remove him from?

Some other things the ACS failed to do, despite Zymere’s courage in telling them about the abuse: ACS 1) never interviewed the child’s doctors, 1) never interviewed the child’s extended family, 1) never interviewed the child’s mother’s boyfriend, the monster who ultimately killed Zymere.

In all, the ACS opened up five abuse investigations into Zymere’s treatment – and did nothing for him.

One of the basic functions of government is to protect the vulnerable. THIS dysfunction – over and above our own partisan, selfish concerns – is what should have us New Yorkers all marching in the streets to demand reform.

This entry was written by Heather Robinson and posted on February 1, 2017 at 1:38 pm and filed under Blog. permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. Keywords: Administration for Children's Service, Mayor Bill de Blasio, Zymere Perkins. Post a comment or leave a trackback: Trackback URL. */?>