Milk Party puts children first

A movement to make children a No. 1 priority among state lawmakers launched in Pensacola on Monday amid fanfare and impassioned speeches.

An estimated 400 people attended the The Children's Movement of Florida's Milk Party rally at Pensacola High School, the first stop of a 15-city bus tour that continues in Panama City today and ends in Key West on Sept. 30.

The goal of the tour — supported by Republicans, Democrats and independents — is to educate political, business and civic leaders, and parents about the urgent need to significantly improve upon the way Florida treats its children.

Movement President David Lawrence Jr. urged the audience to demand that lawmakers put children, who are not part of the political process, before "high-speed trains, prisons and roads."

"We know from study after study that Florida ranks lousy in indicators that measure how we invest in our children: health care, education, readiness for school," Lawrence said. "Painfully, sadly and sinfully, the picture for children is growing worse."

He and other speakers, including Sue Straughn of WEAR TV-3, called on the public to insist that the first gubernatorial debate focus on the issues plaguing children in the state, Lawrence said.

The issues include:

• Florida ranks 49th in the nation in the percentage of uninsured children. Nearly 800,000 children in Florida don't have access to health insurance; 9,000 of them are in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
• Two-thirds of all public school students can't read at grade level.
• 2,100 young people are detained by authorities in Escambia County each year.
• The state's prekindergarten program does not meet most national standards.

However, an investment in children reaps huge returns, Lawrence said.

Every dollar spent by the state to improve the health and well-being of children in the state creates $4.55 in economic output, or a return on the investment of 455 percent, he said.

Aja Antoine, 15, an International Bachelorette student at Pensacola High School, staffed a booth handing out free milk, cookies and backpacks filled with information on how to get involved in the Children's Movement.

"Children are very, very important to our future," Antoine said. "In this community, I don't think some children are motivated enough. Children need to be more well-versed about the world."

Fellow classmate Jalen Benson, 15, plans to rally students to attend the governor's debate in October because he's worried about the future of the state.

"If so many students in Florida can't read on grade level by 10th grade, then that makes me think what's going to happen to the state?" he said.

"What will our state end up looking like when so many of our youth will not be able to function in this global economy?"

WANT TO HELP?

• Contact: The candidates for governor about the importance of the debate on children's issues:

Republican candidate: Rick Scott, 954-915-3360; info@rickscottforflorida.com.

Democratic candidate: Alex Sink, 813-374-9175, contact@alexsink2010.com.

• Attend: Or watch, governors debate on Oct. 6. Time, place and details on transportation to be announced.
• Get involved: Learn how by visiting childrensmovementflorida.org.

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