As daughters, mothers, aunts, grandmothers and great-grandmothers, we want you to change direction for the remainder of your term and to lead your Republican Party, your administration, and this state with compassion, foresight and wisdom.
The future of this state is in your hands and those of the Republican Majority in our Legislature. Eight years of cuts and a punitive political philosophy towards state government and social programs in particular have left many of us who care deeply for Alaska feeling frustrated and angry.
You have strong women in your family. We want you to ask your wife, your daughters, your nieces, your daughters-in-law, and your granddaughters what they see lacking for families in Alaska, particularly women and children. We ask that you pay attention to what they have to say.
We want you to listen to all the people of Alaska, not just the rich and powerful.
We want the very best schools possible for our children and our grandchildren. They cannot be held hostage to an antipathy towards the kind of taxes that almost all Americans pay, or a stubborn refusal to use the state’s billions in reserve. At the same time, we do not want increases in funding for education to be taken out of the hide of the Department of Health & Social Services (or any other department that helps families). It is wrong to ask the Legislature to choose between educating children and keeping them safe and healthy.
We want all children to be able to afford to go to the University. Alaska, with billions in the bank, gets an "F" for excessively high tuition. We want Alaska to get an "A", and give all our children who want it an opportunity for higher education and a brighter future.
We want increased funding for Public Health Nurses, reinstating the six positions cut in FY05 and adding funds for new Nurses. Your administration wanted to cut twelve nurses, but six positions were saved. What kind of rationale can be used to cut the people who are on the frontlines helping mothers, babies, and children?
We want Denali Kid Care to be fully funded and to reinstate the need standard to 200% of the poverty level. We want this program enthusiastically supported by you and the Republican Party.
We want Child Advocacy Centers, now operating on a shoestring budget of federal grants found by Senator Stevens, to be codified in state law so that when federal money is gone, the state will fund these worthwhile programs and keep them running.
We want full funding for drug and alcohol treatment, which are significant factors in domestic violence against women and children and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.
We want you to lead the Republican Majority in the Legislature in reinstating funding for the Council of Domestic Violence and shelters across the state.
We want reliable and accessible mental health services for families with disabled and disturbed children, and we want an expansion by the Department of Health & Social Services of Medicaid-eligible providers for kids under 14.
And, finally, tell your Republican Party leaders to solve the fiscal gap problem, or go into the state’s reserves. We’ve all known men who kept their wives and children in rags while they held on to every last penny. That is not wise management. It is small-mindedness.
Be a wise and compassionate leader for Alaska. All else will follow. Ask the women in your family.
Signed: The Juneau Women’s Rally for Issues, October 2, 2004.